Secrets Hidden in the Shadows
by lalunaticscribe
Summary: Kage. Shadows. A world that is all the ninja knows. But these shadows are alive, aware, and awakened. What they want back is their property, the nine tailed beasts. And their masters have come for them. HIATUS
1. Chapter 1

_**You know, I've combed most of Ff. net's archives and it's amazing how there's a lack of Naruto x YuGiOh fics where actual Duel Monsters and Shadow Magic interact. **_

_**The best three efforts I've seen so far, from the bottom up is Duel Master Naruto by maverick9871 (which is more crack than anything else), Life in Naruto's World by Xero Tenshi (which is in serious need of a formatting makeover, but incredibly funny, especially in Chapter 4 where Kakashi fires a fireball and his opponent switches places with him with Mirror Gate and then Kakashi got barbequed, but I can't say anything more or there'll be spoilers, go read it and pester the author to update while you're at it) and last but not least is Naruto meets Yuugi; Duelist and Ninja Chaos by DJ Rodriguez (which is extremely creepy given how many girls are gathering over Yuugi right now and the Yuugi x Temari pairing is extremely popular.)**_

_**I'm a PuzzleShipper myself  
><strong>_

_**Hence, with some extremely limited knowledge of Naruto bolstered only slightly with Narutopedia, I have written this. My hypothesis will be explained at a later date. This fic is an AU starting from the Sasuke Retrieval Arc onwards, Valley of the End scene, so read on if you like. Don't like, don't read. **_

_**I have a hypothesis concerning the Rikudo Sennin (aka Ninja Jesus) and his relation concerning Shadow Magic but the basic idea behind this fic is: The bijuu are Duel Monsters. And the Yamis are retrieving them back. Let the screaming commence. **_

_**While in this fic I will try to write the horrifying Shadow Games we know and love so much. I think there's an idea to be had with Mind Crush, Soul Rip and ninja sadism...heh, heh, heh...**_

_***organs play in the background while lightning flashes overhead***_

_**Well, yeah, the fic may contain Puzzle- and Tender- shipping (for those unfamiliar it's fan-code for Yami x Yuugi and Bakura X Ryou pairings respectively, unless I somehow got it wrong...) but it's not that over the top. It's more of an estalished relationship, hinted at but not exactly going to feature PWPs with Naruto characters *shudders*. Although I may indulge in Jiraiya thinking of Ryou as a girl...**_

_**Ryou: Jiraiya San, you're going to become a punching bag...**_

_***Toad Sage panicks, runs away quickly...Bakura drags a metal bucket filled with blood over...***_

_**Ryou: *sweatdrops* Yami, what's the bucket for?**_

_**Bakura: Preventive measures. I'm going to use the Chinese water torture on him before the pervert without equal tries anything against you, hikari.**_

_**Ryou: *more sweatdrops* then what's the blood for?**_

_**Bakura: Chinese water torture, Shadow Realm style.**_

_**Author: *smiles so sweetly that it's poisonous* Do begin.**_

_**Ryou and Bakura: The author does not own Naruto or YuGiOh, nor any of the Duel Monsters cards. **_

_**Bakura: However, the author will own whatever subsequent OCs she comes up with.**_

_**Ryou: enjoy!  
><strong>_

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><p><em><strong>Secrets Hidden in the Shadows<strong>_

**LLS**

The secret to ninjutsu was speed. In the shinobi world, speed was everything. After all, considering that there was only so much power one could pack into the average human body, speed became the new determining factor in shinobi tactics. That, and stealth, and cunning. The strongest shinobi were thus named _Kage _for the shadows they embodied, able to move with the speed unknown to the ordinary, always seen yet never seen, never caught like what they were named after.

Of course, these _Kage_, for their skills, were still human. And humans are not a part of the realm of shadows. They do not know what hides in the darkness that forever tags their feet.

The same cannot be said for demons.

Unlike these human killers, the demons are the ones who are truly part of the shadows, truly incapable of sympathy as they kill. It is what they are, and they are powerful such that none on earth can tell them nay.

What shinobi often forget when facing such demons, is that somewhere, somehow, there will always be those who terrifies these demons. And _they,_ whoever they are, should be feared more than the demons, the _bijuu_. Because demons can be understood, but the ones commanding them cannot.

He is said to be one of light and darkness, of day and night, the one with two shadows.

Those who plays games with the fates of men.

"_Mou hitori no boku _(the other me)...?"

The one known as _Yami no Yuugi_ (lit. Yuugi of the Darkness), _Yuugioh_ (lit. King of Games), one half of the Pharaoh Atemu, and a whole lot of titles and names accumulated over the centuries that mainly boiled down to Yami, resisted the urge to wince. He knew this one. It was going to be followed by the dreaded question...

"Is that supposed to happen?" the light to his darkness, _Yuugi _to his _Oh_, the other half of his soul and co-holder of the title of Pharaoh Atemu, one Yuugi Mutou, sounded vaguely sick.

Okay, maybe not _the_ dreaded question, but it was close. For, there was only one person who would make that awful sickening _squish _sound...

_Civility, civility..._he mentally chanted. "Bakura," he stated, deceptively calm. "I remember that we are here to retrieve escaped demons. While this is also an opportunity to explore the culture of these hidden shinobi, I do believe that cutting pieces off with a meat grinder does not further our cause." Although he would privately admit that was cool, and he would keep it in mind when he started up on the punishment he would dish out upon his partner's first breakup.

Not that he would ever get a girlfriend, over his dead, cold and ground to dust bones.

The Thief King scowled further, "You're no fun." The Thief King's other half, one Bakura Ryou, looked vaguely squeamish.

"If it helps, I do believe that cutting his fingers off was justified," Yami offered consolingly.

It was after much trial and error and close shaves during the Great Chicago Event which was so epic that we cannot speak of it, when the three of them had pulled off the Jesus Christ, only without their mortal remains around (he mentally celebrated; take THAT. Ancient magic triumphs again!) that he and the Tomb Robber agreed on a fragile, holey and explosive truce.

It was six months later during their mutual problem that they realised that in the end, it was their mortal opponent who could ever understand what being a _yami _and a Shadow Lord meant.

Well, the Tomb Keeper, Malik, knew as well, but then somehow he whisked his good half, Marik, to Hawaii, and from the few postcards the quartet had received so far, was on permanent hiatus somewhere with Shadow Realm transport. There were several honeymoon jokes being exchanged, half of which were only remotely amusing.

It was also thus that they finally found out via Black Magician and Dark Necrofia respectively that as Shadow Lords _ruled _the Shadow Realm_, _and that by pulling off the Christ-level miracle and coming back as such, the three pairs had inadvertently bound themselves to the Shadows permanently for literally forever; the concept of an end did not make itself known to the Darkness which had been around since only God knows.

Not that he was complaining, since he and his _aibou _got to be together once more, but now he had to watch out for paedophiles.

And now there were escaping demons tracing back all the way to the Renaissance -and he had to wonder what was the purpose of science if people were _still_ stupid enough to summon without watching the wording-and now nine demons were loose in a land full of shinobi and somehow the white-haired _hikari-yami_ pair tagged along as well, the three co-rulers leaving the Shadow Realm's affairs to their competent prime ministers who _had_ after all been doing this for three _millennia,_ and running after the demons, or running _somewhere,_ in the case of Malik and his _hikari_, Marik.

"We're approaching another country, so you might want to get the blood off before other shinobi sees that," he stated matter-of-fact, running fingers through his hair. While shadow magic was still extremely impressive, the temptation of bloodshed was present tenfold without a Sennen Item and it was so easy to fall to it and kill, say, a whole palace who tried to separate you and your light. It was thus for this sole purpose that he and Bakura had mutually agreed (gasp, horror, shock) that the lights would have two Shadow monster bodyguards each, and a truce that would hold until they reached safe surroundings.

Safe defined as _outside shinobi influence, _which would not be for a long time.

They had wanted four monsters, but then realised that too many monsters drew too much attention.

In a not-so-subtle jab at the land they were currently travelling, he and Bakura had chosen Ninja Master Sasuke and White Ninja respectively as primary bodyguards. Ryou had vetoed Fushi Bushi by pointing out how people would notice arrows sticking out, and Bakura had grudgingly accepted, since Ryou being kidnapped meant no _hikari_ around to stop him in more bloodthirsty moments which could mean a repeat of Kuru Eruna, Thief King Bakura style. That and he'd mellowed out.

_Somewhat_...they could only hope.

In a more pragmatic approach, Bakura had willed Wall Shadow into being and set it as a scout. Acknowledging the thief's use of tactics, Yami had willed Wolf into being, Silver Fang currently working in the BEWD Corporation and thus out of commission.

Yes, the Shadow Realm had its own conglomerate, run by said Blue Eyes White Dragon. _And_ a Starbucks. The _yami_s fully agreed to blame Kaiba,and ignored simple puzzles such as how the BEWD managed to do the paperwork without hands to write. The popular hypothesis was that the BEWD Burst Stream of Destruction'd all of it.

So, it was the two white-haired ones who made up the entity called the Thief King, the two punk-haired who made up the Pharaoh, a bandaged ninja with a green overall and a ninja dressed completely in white walking beside a wolf slowly trotting towards a direction resembling the approach of civilisation...

"We should have dragged that ninja along," Bakura grumbled, bored as they approached a valley with statues of ninja standing guard on either side, time and the elements having worn the stone down such that the only distinct symbol was an odd spiral shape that looked like a bird's head. "More fun to torture, if not coerce directions from. And now we're lost!"

"While I might agree with you, considering that he tried to kill us, dragging a ninja from another country across borders constitutes an international incident, Bakura. Unless the thing back in the Star Country wasn't bad enough?" Yami mildly stated.

Suffice it to say that it was lucky for them it was an unpopular and unimportant daimyo who got killed when the two _yami_s, for lack of better terms, sacked the palace...

As the two yamis engaged in their verbal sparring, a sudden flurry of chirps sounded...close by...

"Er...Yami," Yuugi murmured, squinting at the trees. "There aren't any birds around."

The two froze immediately as they felt the presence of one of nine they had been seeking close by. "Sasuke, Kabe," they growled in unison. "Guard formation!"


	2. Chapter 2

**_And this is the follow-up. Enjoy._**

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><p>"<em>Naruto!<em>"

"_Sasuke!_"

It was a clash of shinobi at the Valley of the End as the two duked it out, Uchiha Sasuke in fully unsealed cursed glory, lightning dancing an chirping in his hands, Uzumaki Naruto glowing alight with red chakra, a ball of spinning force in his own.

The resulting clash would have destroyed the bridge and ended the battle decisively if not for the sudden feeling of dread and killing intent that washed over them. The jarring atmosphere snapped both of them from the battle haze as both shinobi flipped in mid-air and landed on the heads of opposing statues.

"My apologies," one of the six standing on the rope-bridge that connected the Valley to the other countries stated. Now that he noticed them, Naruto noted that in these people, two of them had spiky hair of red and black with blonde bangs and even the same black cargo pants and white shirt, the taller one of them being the speaker, two had shaggy long white hair and the same jeans and shirt, one was dressed completely in white and the other was dressed in bandages and a green overall. The last two were clearly shinobi standing in a guard formation, although Naruto found it odd that they had no _hitai-ate. _Even missing-nin kept theirs on when they left their villages. The lack was just weird, as was the killing intent radiating from the speaker, the evil-looking white-haired one -Naruto oddly thought of Anko from the Chuunin Exam at this moment and found that Anko just didn't match up to this one- and the two odd shinobi. "But could you please conclude your fight in a less destructive manner or wait? The bridge is almost destroyed with your techniques."

"Ah, sorry," Naruto sheepishly smiled back. "Sasuke here tried to defect and go to some evil snake dude..."

"_Dobe,_" the Uchiha snarled, lightning still dancing. "I am leaving, and not you, nor any of you, will stop me. So move on, or I will move you."

Oddly, the killing intent intensified, and Naruto himself could barely breathe as the Kyuubi chakra flickered about him as the fox felt it. And...was that _fear _from the _Kyuubi_?

"Grandmaster," the speaker snarled. The bandaged shinobi moved into a battle stance, knives in each hand at the ready. "Take him alive."

Naruto had seen fancy aerodynamics before, but he had to admit that some of the moves the bandaged ninja pulled off couldn't be done by a human. Even cursed-seal Sasuke looked like he was having a hard time just dodging this 'grandmaster'.

Naruto turned his head to see the speaker study him with crimson eyes that oddly made him think of fresh blood and the Kyuubi. "_Brat, we've had our difficulties," _the demon fox was babbling in his mindscape, sounding oddly panicked,_"but I swear I'll pay you all my rent if you just hide me from that guy..."_

"I want a word with you when we get to something resembling civilisation, _Kyuubi no Yonkou_," the speaker snapped, to the shock of both shinobi present. "You might be in a human body now, but that would not stop me."

"_Shit. He figured it out." _the fox lamented. Somehow, the fox's bravado had run cold, and part of him had marvelled at how even the great Kyuubi seemed so afraid of this slight man. It was cool, in a scary kind of way, but still cool.

"Yuugioh, it would be a lot of trouble to take both with us on the way," the nicer-looking of the white-haired ones piped up.

The one addressed as Yuugioh nodded as he reached into his pocket. Naruto and the exhausting Sasuke twitched, Sasuke moving too late and getting stuck in a hold by the bandaged ninja, who promptly pulled both arms out of their sockets and effectively immobilised Sasuke's arms. Naruto fought to stifle the wince as Sasuke screamed in pain, the curse seal effects diminishing as bandaged-ninja ripped the wings off (curse-seal level two, remember?) and Sasuke finally fell unconscious.

From a pocket, the man drew a long, brown card. "Ninja Grandmaster," he called, holding it up. "_Ninja Art of Transformation!_"

Naruto had to fight the resulting drop-jaw as the card glowed a golden light, along with the bandaged ninja and grew and morphed into a giant green falcon, different from the ones he had seen in the Konoha post office in not only size, but the light that seemed to shine from it as the green falcon lifted its head and cried out a low, musical note.

"God Bird Simorgh," Yuugioh addressed it. "Send them back."

The number one unpredictable ninja had only one thought in his head as he and the oddly quiet (and bleeding and unconscious) Sasuke were buffeted by strong winds from the bird's wings all the way back to the village:

"_**WTF?"**_

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><p>Nara Shikamaru could barely blink as what should have been a normal by-the-side reconnaissance mission escalated to his shadow growing claws. He knew that there were ways to control shadows- heck, he was a shadow-jutsu wielder himself- but then, shadows didn't just grow claws and grab your throat and throw you down from what must have been five stories up. As he regained his balance and landed on his feet, the tip of a scarily sharp knife rested itself on his carotid artery and he froze, already knowing that the knife-holder would cut his throat before any jutsu could be done.<p>

He looked up into russet eyes the colour of old blood and for some reason, a part of him proved that self-preservation was still well and alive and kicking him to run, hide, flee...

"Sorry," the nicer, punk-haired one standing behind the one holding the knife, dressed in a white cotton polo tee and black shorts with black and white sneakers sheepishly stated. Shikamaru looked into violet eyes and immediately detected his apprehension. "We're lost. Do you know how to get to _Konohagakure no Sato_?"

If his hands weren't held down by fear of the knife slitting his throat, he would have face-palmed. The scary person with white hair still holding the dagger (a kunai, he noted, sharpened to something he had never seen before in Konoha that Tenten would probably kill or possibly severely maim to study) to his and Temari's throats seemed to have spotted his expression, because soon the Nara scion could feel bleeding. On either side, Kiba and Akamaru froze, as if uncertain of how to act. Nearby, Neji, Lee, Kankuro and even Gaara were slumped over the back of a huge golem-like thing [Elemental Hero Clayman] while a muscular samurai with several sharp and pointy weapons sticking out of his pack [Armed Samurai Ben Kei] held the bodies of what must be all five of the Sound ninjas' corpses.

The scariest thing was that Sabaku no Gaara was asleep, and Shukaku hadn't acted up yet. Well, the actual scariest thing was the killing intent the two evil twins seemed to generate that made him want to crawl into a hole and hide. Training took over upon panic. "No visa? You'll have to go by the main portal." the chuunin replied, burying panic under his training by reflex. "We're shinobi of Konoha, we can send a message ahead to warn the guards, er, Mr..."

"Mutou. Mutou Yuugi _desu_." the vertically challenged one replied. "That's my twin, over there, the scary-looking white-haired one is Bakura, and his nicer twin hiding behind is Bakura Ryou. We're here to..." he shot a look at his twin, who was currently staring at them with a disconcerting crimson gaze. Years on a team with an Uchiha fan-girl had schooled Shikamaru of all the signs to look out for in a bishounen, however unwilling. Somehow, he knew that if the village fan-girls ever saw his scary twin in the loose white cotton collared shirt and flak jacket with khaki shorts and sandals he had on right now, the Uchiha would be immediately replaced.

The _twin_ shrugged in reply. "Retrieve lost property. Your friends here..." he indicated to the golem's load, "need immediate medical assistance. I have already sent two shinobi ahead, so we would need to return. My apologies for holding you at knife-point, but me and my...associates..."here Bakura shot a dirty look at him, "have bad experience with shinobi."

Shikamaru blinked. And blinked. "It takes two days to Konohagakure on foot." he slowly stated. "Unless we can fly, we've to move immediately and hope for the best..."

"In that case," the twin cocked his head to the side. His jaw, and Temari's dropped at the sight. "We would have to fly. Would you care to tag along? It does seem that the two of you require medical assistance as well, and we would require navigation to Konoha. We are quite lost, after all."


	3. Chapter 3

**_Well, I actually took some time to write this up, but i wanted to delay the presses a bit first. Enjoy!_**

**_This fic is written under the Creative Commons as non-profit fanfiction.  
><em>**

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><p>The sun was setting over Konohagakure when Simorgh finally landed.<p>

Their entire group became the first in history to have the head of ANBU Torture & Interrogation greet them at the portal as the green bird descended before the great gates. True to his reputation, Morino Ibiki did little more than blink and raise near non-existent eyebrows as his eyes widened. "Name and rank," he stated brusquely.

The four looked at each other before turning their gaze on Ibiki. Bakura growled. "We're busy."

"My _hikari_ is tired from the long travel," Yami snapped. "If you will not move, I will move you." Crimson eyes bored holes into the head of ANBU Torture & Interrogation, promising a bloody and slow vengeance that the head of ANBU T&I mentally applauded and promised to himself to learn as soon as possible.

"Ibiki Sensei, we need medics quickly," Shikamaru called as he descended upon the forest floor from the bird's back, the Sand kunoichi warily following him. The golem followed after, carefully lowering its load onto soft ground before disappearing in a whisper of purple mist. The bird followed soon after with a musical cry, as did the armed warrior, leaving a pile of corpses outside the village gates. The gate guards immediately moved to dispose of the bodies.

"Uzumaki Naruto and Uchiha Sasuke are...?" the torture specialist enquired.

"Ah," Yami sighed. "Bakura, you were right. Simorgh is getting slow."

"Told ya," Bakura happily grumbled. "Now, they should be coming..."

There were two rapidly growing spots of shadow growing in the air as the shinobi looked up to see Naruto and Sasuke approaching at terminal velocity from the sky. A black blur leapt from the tree-cover and made immediately for them, jumping into the air and neatly catching both boys just ten metres from the ground. As the trio landed, it was revealed to be a Hatake Kakashi who had obviously seen better days. A few moments later, the pug Pakkun arrived at his feet, took one look at the newcomers, and his eyes abruptly widened.

"Never," Kakashi panted, Sharingan eye active. "Again."

"Nice catch," Bakura snarked as he and Ryou made their way into the village, two medic-nin relieving Kakashi of his burden. "Oi, Yuugioh, me and Ryou are going to the inn first. You want me to take the pipsqueak along?"

"Don't hold out on my account, Bakura," Yami shook his head. "After all, there was a reason we booked two rooms on opposite ends of the inn."

"You did? Oh, thanks," Bakura absent-mindedly replied, pushing a suddenly blushing Ryou into the village, ignoring the shinobis' warning motions and moving for weapons. "You handle Customs, I suck at diplomacy."

"Glad to see you hold so much trust in me," Yami replied, not missing a beat as he shot a warning glare that made the guards reconsider their choices. "Remember, no...funny business. Unless you're outnumbered, or if the opponent goes first, or if both of you are threatened. This is a hidden village."

"Yeah, yeah, I know," Bakura waved it off, lugging two heavy backpacks along. "Stop nagging," he added as Ryou took the smaller of the two packs, before turning around and dismissing the monsters, including the two ninja bodyguards. Several shinobi jaws hit the ground as the monsters disappeared in a swirl of purple mist.

"Remember the last hidden village? Now, go." Yami shot back, before turning to the two shinobi guarding the gates. "So, where were we? Oh yes, Customs. _Hikari, _are you..."

"Yami, I'm fine," the seemingly shorter twin to Yami replied. "Let us settle our passports and deal with the situation tomorrow. _Ano_...Ibiki San?"

"This way," the battle-hardened shinobi stated, turning on his heel. "Kakashi, the Hokage wants you present at the hospital. It concerns Uzumaki Naruto."

The silver-haired ninja nodded in reply, still silent as he watched the trio move off, the last words of Pakkun before it left still echoing:

"_Careful, Kakashi._ _Those two...they don't feel right, they emit too much killing intent. They don't smell right. It's like the monsters of the past; they smell like the Bijuu, only older and with much more blood. Its like the old legends the elders used to tell, the stories of the dangers of the ninja legends...like monsters worse than the _bijuu _could ever be."_

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><p>"Tsunade Baa Chaaaaaaan..."<p>

"Eat something other than ramen, shitty brat!" The Fifth Hokage, Slug Princess Tsunade yelled at the newest patient. In the bed beside him slept Gaara, which on hindsight was scary, but she was counting her blessings anyway. Naruto had really dragged a now unconscious Sasuke back to Konoha, or more accurately they flew back, but it didn't matter anyway; both were relatively safe now. Until the next crisis.

"But, Baa Chan...!" Naruto whined.

"Hokage Sama," Morino Ibiki greeted as he walked in. "Four travellers came to Konoha today, two of which are handling their passports at Customs. The other two are currently checking into their rooms at the Konoha Onsen Inn." It was then that the two ANBU hidden behind Ibiki made itself known and handed her the approved documents. Tsunade privately wondered at their hair; a more colourful combination had not been found yet, or Naruto would be wearing it. As it were, Naruto was loud enough already.

As it were, the two she was wondering about were escorted into the hospital room.

"Good afternoon, Hokage Sama," the taller one spoke. "I am Ya- Yuugioh," he amended as his partner discreetly elbowed him, "and this is my partner, Mutou Yuugi. We came here to retrieve some lost property and somehow, we were redirected to you by the Customs..."

"Oh, you!" Naruto exclaimed. "Bastard, you told the huge green chicken which that bandaged ninja morphed into to send me back! I was blown back all the way by that huge chicken!"

"It would help if you were to refrain from referring to the God Bird Simorgh as poultry," Yami coldly replied. "After all, it is customary not to insult a five-story tall bird, no matter how much it resembles its mundane cousins."

Tsunade tried not to chuckle at that mental imagery.

"Anyway," Yuugioh continued, ignoring Naruto's progressively louder exclamations, "we are here about that lost property..."

"Your property concerns may be important," Tsunade diplomatically began, "but the village is currently recovering from a war..."

"Oh, but this concerns the resident within that boy," Yuugi piped up for the first time. "Odd, but normally people don't get demons willingly sealed into them, do they? We are here, of course, Hokage Sama, to discuss the recovery of the _Kyuubi no Yonkou_."

A pin dropping from across the village could be heard clearly in the silence that followed.

"Wh-what?" Naruto managed to stutter.

"Like I said before. Kyuubi, I want a word with you," Yami snarled in Naruto's direction. "I _know_ that you can take a spectral form. Here. Now."

_Not in a million years are you going to be dragging me back,_ the proud _bijuu _muttered in Naruto's mindscape.

"He says no," the blonde relayed, aware that Yami was currently releasing killer intent that made even Orochimaru look about as threatening as Michael Jackson. Already the blonde could see Ibiki and Kakashi take two steps back, while Tsunade barely held her place.

"Either I come in, or you come out," Yami stated, matter-of-fact.

A moment later, red chakra, painless but visible, seemed to flow from Naruto to form a fox's face, its red eyes gleaming with hate, floating over the hospital bed. The shinobi present except for Naruto took several steps back.

"_You_," it hissed.

"And hello, Kyuubi," Yuugioh dryly replied. "It took six hundred years before anyone noticed your absence, and four hundred years to locate the nine of you, you know."

"_No one asked_, _Yuugioh_," the fox avatar mockingly replied. "_And you wouldn't drag me out when the kid could be killed, right? There's no way to drag me back to the shadows, Oh Sama._"

"You underestimate me," the crimson-eyed youth coldly answered, hands fisted at his sides. "Perhaps you should remember that even if you leave, the shadows recognise their own. And they answer to only six people, one of them being me. That includes _you._"

The fox avatar hissed, twisting into indistinct shapes, chakra writhing like indistinct mist as if the demon itself was in pain. Naruto's eyes screwed up as the fox's screams echoed through his mind. The remaining shinobi stood frozen, unsure of how to act.

As the shrieks died off into echoes, the chakra regained the shape of a terribly exhausted fox.

"Therefore, I brought this," Yami airily stated as his hand pulled out a brown-backed playing card slowly from his pocket. The shinobi present were actually rather surprised to see the fox's face blanch in apparent horror. It was like seeing a typhoon with a phobia of mice. "Yes, I will _drag_ you out of the prison the humans put you in if necessary, and show you the Shadows' prisons. I'm told that it's quite the enlightening experience..."

"_No, no...brat, stop him!_" the fox howled as the tri-coloured hair man advanced forward. Naruto looked at the brown-backed card with some trepidation, hardly daring to imagine how a square of cardboard was supposed to scare the Kyuubi into whimpering.

"**Eh...wha? Ah, no, no, no!**" Golden chakra began leaking from the nearby Gaara to form a miniature _tanuki_ face. "**Shit, stupid seal! Can't escape!**"

"Two of you in the same room?" Yami sceptically stated, pausing in his tracks. "Ichibi, you never were on good terms with Kyuubi. What changed your mind?"

"**Bloody bastard, I'd rather spend eternity with this kid than go back! I get to kill people here!**" Ichibi no Shukaku howled loud enough to crack the glass."**And I'm powerful! No one gives a damn if another monster's missing back home, but ****here, we're the next best thing to god!**"

"I see that the King of All Animals would have to re-educate you when we send you back," Yami dryly replied. "Two in one day...of course, the details of your release would have to be discussed with them first. I imagine it would be quite rude to unwillingly subject shinobi to an extraction..." he trailed off as his eyes widened. "Oh, Kyuubi..."

"_Figured it out, haven't you?_" the fox was smug once more.

"**Uh huh, oh yeah...**" the _tanuki _sang.

"One more word from you, raccoon, and Behemoth himself with re-educate you," Yami threatened. "_Sleep, _both of you. Ichibi, if you try to eat your host, _I_ will deal with you. And then I'll let Gazeru deal with you. Then Behemoth will deal with you."

The fox and the _tanuki _visibly gulped as gold and red chakra faded.

"That was..." Tsunade found her voice.

"The common interaction between Bijuu and their masters. Idiot human who sealed the Kyuubi," Yami muttered, mostly to himself before turning on Tsunade. Cold crimson met brown. "Like I said, I am here to recover my property. I am willing to compensate the village for any losses incurred during his reign of terror. What is important is that he returns with me to serve his sentence."

"Come with me," Tsunade brusquely replied as she led them out against Naruto's insistent yells and through the hospital's hallways.

"What relationship do you share with the _bijuu_?" the Hokage started conversationally.

"His boss reports to another boss, who reports to another boss, who reports to me," Yami shrugged, as if being the overall master of the _bijuu_ was a minor thing. "The same relationship goes for all the tailed beasts, as you call them, that seems to have escaped from me."

There was a stunned silence as they absorbed the implications of the last few sentences.

"However," he blithely continued. "We appear to have misplaced several demons and hence we have been busy searching and retrieving them."

There was a subtle twitch about the Hokage as they walked towards a nondescript door set in the wall, Mitarashi Anko standing guard.

The almost-twins stopped in surprise before Anko.

"Cursed," Yuugi whispered. "Oh, my..."

The three Jounin and one Hokage froze where they stood. "Yeah," Anko shrugged, playing the cool facade. "It's a long story. There's a seal on it, though, so it's mostly fine-"

"The seal weakens with each passing day," the taller one whispered. "And as it does, your will erodes, and soon you become nothing more than a power-hungry puppet. We could do something about that..."

Anko snorted. "It's a cursed seal placed by the snake Sannin Orochimaru himself. Even the Sandaime couldn't do it. And I wouldn't let a couple of brats near me anyway."

The shorter one turned visibly widening eyes at the female Jounin. "It's on her neck, _Mou_ _hitori_ _no_ _boku_."

"It would take an act of will to do so anyway," The other replied as they followed Tsunade into the room towards the unconscious Sasuke. "The thing is, right now, since the seal on the boy is threatening his life and sanity, I can remove it and not feel guilty afterwards."

"You can remove cursed seals?" Tsunade exclaimed, as did the three others standing outside.

The taller moved beside Sasuke, turning the brunette's head with his hand until the cursed seal was revealed in all its glory. He pulled out the same card and muttered a few words over it, making a few hand signs that were unintelligible to the shinobi present, before reaching _into_ the card and pulling _through_ it. Something suspiciously high-pitched and a lot like Michael Jackson's howls screamed as Sasuke thrashed around a bit, but calmed before the shinobi could react.

Calmly, the taller one held up the card, which contained a picture of the curse mark, laid out flat...

And not a single mark was on the Uchiha's skin.

"So, what about that offer?" Yuugi now asked a stunned Anko. The Jounin were busy picking up their jaws from the floor, while Tsunade seemed to have acquired a case of the widening eyes.

Tsunade recovered soon enough, turning her towards the door. "Hatake, Morino, follow me. Mitarashi, thorough check-up on Sasuke."

* * *

><p>"That went well," Yuugi commented as he leant against the window-pane, watching Anko perform jutsu that left him wondering about the strange ways of shinobi.<p>

"Oh yes," Yami replied, voice as dry as the desert sun. "As awkward the moment was, it seems like they comprehend what our presence means."

"Huh?" Yuugi enquired, eyes wide as they took in the village sights in the light of the dying sun, the Hokage Monument above all, from their view from the hospital window.

"The Ichibi mentioned that they were the 'closest thing to God'," Yami elaborated. "Having shown ourselves capable of scaring the most powerful thing they have ever comprehended, to a shinobi, we have become the biggest threat. Now, if they had any sense, they would try to pull us to their side."

"That or kill us." Yuugi wisely pointed out.

"That too," Yami agreed, an unholy smirk blooming on his face. "Then again, what do you say to some divine intervention? I imagine Osiris is getting hungry..."

* * *

><p><strong><em>Please read and review!<em>**


	4. Chapter 4

**_Please review. I desperately need to learn more about the art of writing and i cannot do it by sel__f__-criticism alone_**.

* * *

><p>"That was...terrifying," Kakashi lightly commented. Terrifying indeed. A cursed seal that even the 'Professor' Sandaime couldn't remove fallen apart into a card in the hands of a <em>teenager.<em>

"Unexpected," Ibiki agreed.

"That is what we want on our side," Tsunade commented. "And I have the feeling that that's not their only power. Morino, you said they summoned a giant green falcon? And they _flew_ on it?"

"Yes, Hokage Sama." Ibiki reported. Even Kakashi looked faintly stunned.

"And apparently there were more...reports of more strange creatures from the Genin team they came back with." Ibiki chose his words carefully. "Naruto said that they were accompanied with two shinobi with no _hitai-ate _in sight and extremely dangerous skill, for one of them to have taken down Uchiha Sasuke quite easily even with the cursed seal fully active, if he is to be believed. The ninja then transformed to a 'great big green chicken' as described by Uzumaki Naruto, and blew the pair of them back with a single flap of its wings. My belief is that he was referring to the giant green falcon they flew here and later dismissed as a summons, along with a golem and an armed warrior.

"A human summons is most unusual," Tsunade noted, curious.

"My ninja dogs reported that they smelt like the _bijuu, _except older." Kakashi reported next. "They don't smell right, they don't feel right, they emit too much killing intent for any normal human being, and even my _kuchiyose _seemed afraid of them. Pakkun wouldn't even stay within earshot of them. Watch." A _kuchiyose _later, Pakkun was shivering and cowering in Kakashi's arms, scrabbling to get away from the two almost-lookalikes who were looking at the Hokage monument in awe, oblivious to the ninja contingent.

"Care to explain?" Kakashi stated as the pug tried to burrow further into his jacket.

"Can't, summoning contract, privacy clause, along with _oh gods, oh gods let go!_" Pakkun yelped quietly.

Tsunade scratched her brow. "Odd." She did her own _kuchiyose _and soon a slug appeared.

"Yes, Tsunade Sama?" the slug's melodious voice whispered.

Tsunade pointed to the two oblivious near-lookalikes. "Do you recognise them?"

The slug looked before turning back to the Hokage, its voice reverent. "They are masters of the summoning, lords of a realm of demons. Young ninja animals are taught to run and hide in the presence of these shadow lords. If the _bijuu _were monsters, then they would be the ones who control the monsters, the ones who the monsters ultimately answer to." The slug then turned nervous. "Even the gods' power are at their command."

"And they want their property, the Kyuubi, back," Tsunade finished, face-palming. "Damn you, Sarutobi Sensei..."

Several ANBU flashed into view. "Hokage Sama," they greeted, hands on weapons. There was an abrupt yelp, before the crackle of lightning and another ANBU flew out of the open door. Tsunade barged in to be greeted by the sight of a stunned kunoichi Jounin and the two lookalikes, the taller of them holding a slightly smoking card.

Evidently Yuugioh didn't like their reaction, for he soon drew another card. "Explain," he stated to Tsunade, brown-backed card threateningly held out.

It was funny how a playing card could suddenly seem so ominous, even to the Legendary Gambling Sucker...

"A Sound incursion team has been sighted heading towards Konohagakure," one of the ANBU reported. "They are heading from the west as we speak."

Tsunade nodded. "Intercept the forces, arrest them."

"I see. It looks like my property problem can wait until daylight," Yuugioh observed, still holding on to the card. "Hokage Sama, I will leave you to your duties, then."

"Uzumaki Naruto is a shinobi of the Leaf," Tsunade retorted as the two turned to leave. "If you want him, it will happen when hell freezes over."

Yuugioh stopped, raising an eyebrow. "Hell is frozen in some parts, so I do guess it counts. Furthermore, remember that Naruto and the Kyuubi," several ANBU froze at the open defiance of the law, "are separate entities. My property pertains to the Kyuubi alone; it does not extend to the vessel."

"The seal..." Tsunade faltered upon recalling how easily the curse seal had been picked apart.

"Tricky," Yuugioh admitted. "I do not often meet things that require the sacrifice of a life to seal. Nevertheless, it appears that right now you are busy with a possible infiltration attempt and hence we will resolve this after your crisis...assuming that it does succeed." He then turned to leave. "I am no shinobi; I cannot be expected to understand what you would do now, so I will wait, and I will hope, and perhaps, if my interests are threatened, I will help. Good day, Hokage Sama. I will arrange for an appointment on the morrow, we are weary. _Aibou,_ let's go."

"Wait! What about the shinobi lady?" Yuugi insisted. "We can at least remove the seal first..."

"Whatever we do without permission must represent a threat to their sanity or life, _aibou._ We must wait..."

"No," Anko spoke loudly, storming up to him. "How fast can you remove it?"

He blinked. "It depends, really...but not now. We have only just arrived and must recuperate. My apologies."

"How long?" Anko insisted, face set. A kunai was twirling in her hand, as if she was itching to throw it.

"We'll have to make an appointment," Yuugioh politely replied, unafraid, leading his _aibou _by the hand. "Tomorrow at eight am. we'll be making an appointment for an audience with the Hokage. Perhaps we will see you at...eleven?"

* * *

><p>"The Kyuubi is under surveillance," Yuugi told the Bakurae later in their private quarters, having convened at the punk-haired pair's rooms. "Yami's recovering from a headache now, though."<p>

Ryou nodded in reply. "We can utilise the _bijuu_ as bargaining chips," Bakura interrupted, "while we get away. If there's anything we learnt while travelling, it's that shinobi always look for more power. They don't know that we have more than what they themselves will ever comprehend."

"True," Yuugi nodded. "We must get the Ichibi and the Kyuubi before we leave Konoha anyway. From there, we can head towards the other countries and find more of them."

"_Aibou..._" Yami no Yuugi groaned as he stepped into the room. "There are shinobi watching us."

"Well, what's the plan, _Per-Aa_?" Bakura asked.

The look on his face was grim. "Nothing."

"Yami..." Yuugi began.

"We are exhausted from travelling. There is hardly anything we can do now. The hospital is likely under security and our property is not likely to abscond anywhere." he explained. "Therefore there is no need to do anything. Should the shinobi move against us, traps will be activated and _reduce_ them."

"Is that really necessary?" A voice came from the shadows of their room. Tsunade and her retinue were not truly prepared for their shadows to erupt and hold them in place.

"Hokage Sama," the four greeted coldly as one.

"You are extremely lucky that I have set the traps to capture and not kill," Yami added coldly, eyes blazing.

"What are your intentions towards Konoha?" she asked. "You," she indicated at Yami, "have confessed yourself after the _bijuu_. Are you with Akatsuki? What are your intentions?"

"Whatever this Akatsuki is, we are not allied to it." Yuugioh replied, frowning. "We are here for our property, the Kyuubi. We will leave upon recovering our property."

Tsunade sighed, discarding the raging act. "I see. I suppose then that we should conduct negotiations to discuss the trade tomorrow."

"Agreed," Yuugioh said without hesitation. "Good night, Hokage Sama, and please take _all_ your guards, your eyes and your ears with you. My friend here is extremely protective of his privacy and bloodthirsty in his methods of securing it. I fear that he might severely maim any stranger he finds rifling through his stuff right now."

Bakura smirked as an unholy yelp came from the rooms across the inn; the rooms of the Bakurae. It was the kind of smirk that sent shivers down the spines of some of the hardened warriors present. Tsunade's skin itself crawled. _This is a demon,_ she realised. _No, not right; these are the ones the demons answer to. _

* * *

><p>Uchiha Sasuke woke up, free, as the sun broke through to colour the sky.<p>

Pale fingers brushed the part where the curse mark once resided. Having remembered everything after having just awoken, contemplated his actions once more in the quiet half-night the hospital afforded. He felt weaker, more tired, but finally...free. Free of the pain of the seal, free from the constant struggle.

And the one who had removed it...what _power._

He was broken out of the constant reverie by the door opening. His head turned to see the loudest, most unpredictable ninja in Konoha with bandages, a foot cast, and using crutches.

"Yo, Sasuke," the loud-mouth greeted.

"Hm." Sasuke replied.

Silence reigned.

"We got blown back by a huge green chicken." Naruto commented.

That was interesting. "Beaten by poultry, the two of us," Sasuke replied. "We'll never live it down."

"Hell yeah."

More silence.

"It was still giant and badass." Naruto continued. "And the bandaged ninja who turned into the chicken, he was really fast."

"And strong," Sasuke added, wincing at the pain in his shoulder.

"Yeah," Naruto enthusiastically continued. "The weird guy with the crazy hair's scary. He's in Konoha, you know. With his twin and another pair of twins."

"Hm."

"Yeah, he was here. Before that, he visited me and Gaara. Kyuubi's scared of him."

Which put things into perspective. The guy with weird hair trumped Orochimaru on any day.

"Then he left, and I sneaked after Baa Chan and the two weird guys, they're like twins, you know, except one's nicer and the other's scarier, and they said that crazy Anko had a seal as well and they removed your seal. Scary twin also said that the seal controls your mind, Kakashi Sensei told me."

Black eyes widened.

"Yeah, and then he did this weird thing and the next thing Kakashi Sensei know, the seal's in a card and you're..." Naruto scratched his head. "Here."

Silence descended once more.

"I'm not going to say anything." Naruto continued. "The seal put something on you, and it's obviously not you, so there's nothing, really. And then you're here, and I beat you up, and well..."

"_Dobe?_ Shut up."

"Hey!"

"Thanks."

"You're welcome."

* * *

><p>Kakashi stood by the door to Sasuke's room, deliberating. He had gone to see Naruto, only to be informed by a half-asleep Gaara that Naruto had gone to see his team-mate. Judging from how Gaara held on to the pillow, Kakashi had privately thought the Sand shinobi about to abscond with it and left the room, leaving him with his love affair with the hospital bed.<p>

It was endearing.

It was also creepy beyond all reason.

It was also disconcerting how Gaara had warned him: "Yuugioh will come for the _bijuu_ soon. They might rebel and tear Naruto apart to escape. Protect him."

Sighing, Kakashi recalled last night, when he had visited the four as part of the Hokage's entourage...

_Flashback:_

_The shinobi found themselves tangled, held by their own shadows as the four turned to them. Claws wormed their way out of the umbra and soon held themselves close to jugulars, veins and arteries. _

_Then came the extremely awkward conversation...and the thinly veiled threat._

_A stunned silence descended upon the room. _

"_Be that as it may," Yuugioh continued. "We are clearly in need of information. If you may provide a map of the shinobi continent as well as information on the Kyuubi's seal, we would be extremely grateful."_

_The claw on his jugular seemed to tighten in emphasis._

"_We can provide a map," Tsunade agreed. "But there are very real threats to anyone connected to the _bijuu _now and while we do not dispute your ability, it seems that you have people who require protecting."_

_Yuugioh seemed to frown, his eyes darting to Ryou and Yuugi, followed by Bakura. There seemed to be a mental conversation going on between them for a few moments before Yuugioh's eyes snapped back to Tsunade. _

"_If we must, we will take the Kyuubi vessel and the one he was fighting at the Valley of the End." Yuugioh decided. "The Kyuubi vessel is an obvious choice, the other because of the mental trauma associated with the curse seal."_

"_Mental trauma?" Tsunade's eyes widened. _

"_That...thing was specifically created to interfere with the body's natural systems, and corrupt the mind with power," Yuugioh elaborated. "It is essentially a mental drug used to place a mind under another's control, impair one's judgement, force one to desire the feeling of power, enhance negative thoughts. A form of mind control, if you will. I would require more information, but I can surmise that he is...under puberty? If so, then he would have been more susceptible to such influence. Minds at that stage are always easy to mold. So...flexible."_

_Kakashi felt vaguely sickened, Tsunade looked openly so. _

"_Hence he would require advanced help to recover," Yuugioh finished. _

"_Their team-mates would also have to follow," Tsunade warned. _

"_If they must," Yuugioh shrugged. "That is, if they can cope with the threats faced during our travels."_

"_They are shinobi, they are more than capable," Tsunade hotly replied. _

_Yuugioh's expression was blank and cold, crimson eyes piercing like the Sharingan, except that Kakashi had never before felt such fear associated with the red eyes. "I mean _demons,_ Hokage Sama. Monsters much like the God Bird Simorgh in my employ, warriors of skill beyond compare, beasts of equal if not higher standing than the Kyuubi."_

_He then leaned closer and in a whisper, wistfully confessed. "I hope that you do manage to sleep well tonight, Hokage Sama. There are after all, several eyes watching in the darkness."_

_Flashback end_

Recalling those eyes, Kakashi could not help but shudder. The last time he had looked into any such eyes was in his own eye, in Sasuke and in the eyes of Uchiha Itachi. Such intensity even put the Sharingan to shame. And this was one with command over that_...monster._

"Sa-Su-Ke!" the loud-mouth ninja stated. Loudly.

"Stop yelling, _Dobe._ Thisis a hospital in the early morning."

"Oh. Sa-"

"Can you shut _up?"_ Sasuke's voice was exasperated, but affectionate, Kakashi noted as he opened the door without knocking. It was as if whatever good nature he had lost with the curse seal was recovered upon its removal.

Orochimaru had a lot to answer for, he silently swore to himself.

"Yo," he greeted his students. "Naruto, you know the Hokage said mandatory bed rest."

"But, Kakashi Sensei-!"

"Sasuke, you're cleared of any charges since Yuugioh stated that you were under mind control," Kakashi continued, ignoring Naruto by dint of long practice.

Sasuke twitched. Visibly. "Yuugioh?"

"Oh, the guy who summoned the green chicken who blew us back!" Naruto's fist made contact with his palm, the metaphorical light bulb lighting up. "Oh yeah, I gotta go after the bastard, dunno what he did to Gaara, now Gaara's asleep and it's all creepy..."

"Green chicken?" Sasuke asked the sensei, ignoring Naruto's rant.

"More like a five-story tall green falcon." Kakashi replied. "The seal's removed, by the way."

"I know." Sasuke's fingers automatically flew to his neck. "I want...to thank them."

"You might not want to after I tell you our next mission," Kakashi light-heartedly commented. "but we'll have to wait..."

The door flew open again as Sakura barrelled in. "Naruto! Sasuke Kun!"

"Sakura Chan! I did it!" Naruto flashed his biggest grin.

"Liar," Sasuke commented. "We were blown back by the green chicken, remember?"

"It was five stories tall!" Naruto protested. "Come on, even I can't take on a huge green chicken!"

"Don't ever do it again!" Sakura cried, bopping the two on the head. "I was worried about both of you!"

"That hurt," both of them commented.

Despite himself, despite the threat now in their village, Kakashi smiled to himself as the sun rose in the sky outside. Their Team Seven was back.

All was well, for now.

* * *

><p><strong><em>Bet you didn't expect that! Well, I don't really believe it bashing characters, but let's see how it all works out first...;D<em>**


	5. Chapter 5

"Bodyguards," Bakura stated flatly, legs splashing in hot water, wincing as the morning chill in his feet met the hot water. "You want us to take on shinobi bodyguards. People who would kill us as easily as help us."

"We require knowledge of how this world works," Yami explained, already deeply immersed in the _onsen_. Beside him, Yuugi soaked, daydreaming. "It makes sense to take them up on their offer. Besides, we can gloss over a few details and throw them to the shadows if they try. Furthermore, we flirt with danger with you around already. What's a team of ninja compared to _Touzoku Oh _Bakura?"

"Flattery gets you nowhere, _per-Aa,_"A smirking Bakura shot back as his eyes wandered to a Ryou already blushing from prolonged contact with the hot springs. And possibly extended contact with Bakura. "But I see your point. And they can guard our _hikari_s too. The black-haired one was interesting, wasn't he?"

"An avenger," Yami reiterated. "With the red eyes and a dark aura."

"Offshoots of yours?"

"Not likely. I never had children. Looked to different horizons, remember? Seth, maybe."

"Never heard." Bakura purred, finally descending into the water with a relieved sigh. "I heard women swear up and down the Nile about _you,_ but not about that stick-up-his-ass."

Yami scowled. "Says the master of the nine-day orgy."

Now it was Bakura's turn to scowl. "Now how did you...?"

"Medjai."

"Figures. Bloody eyes and ears everywhere." Bakura muttered, shaking his head. "You see that pervert near the women's hot springs? Chronic case if there ever was one."

"I see him. In a ninja village?" Yami sounded almost amused as the pair watched the white-haired pervert peeping near the women's baths. "Continuing on, sure he's not one of yours?"

"Not bloody likely," Bakura scoffed, watching the pervert scarper from several angry kunoichi. "Being the Thief King wasn't a viable occupation to have kids around. Apprentices maybe, but not kids."

"The blonde container was also interesting," Yuugi interrupted the conversation. "Don't you think so, _mou hitori no boku_?"

The Yuugioh turned rapidly softening eyes towards his light, much to the amusement of the other _hikari-yami _pair, who were often much amused by Yuugi's general antics, non-Yami or otherwise. It was like a soap-opera, only that you just couldn't believe anyone could be that whipped. Oh, Yuugioh could hold his own against almost any will...save that of his light. The white-haired pair firmly believed that if Yuugi asked the Pharaoh to incinerate the world, the only question would be 'to what extent?'. It was a scary thought, seeing as Bakura was a _yami_ as well.

"Intriguing perhaps," Yami agreed. "But it is the seal that I am more worried about. Sacrifice seals come with... _shinigami_." he shuddered slightly.

"And our relations with death aren't exactly stellar at the moment, are they?" Yuugi sighed. "What would this mean?"

"Research," Yami supplied. "And possible espionage. I will find a copy of the seal and send it to the Castle of Dark Illusions and the Royal Magical Library. Failing that, the Magical Citadel of Endymion. If all else fails, then perhaps more actions will be undertaken."

"That means me, huh?" Bakura sighed. "I'm still not acting the hero, though."

"We know," the three replied.

* * *

><p>"Bodyguards?" Sasuke stated sceptically. "We're supposed to be bodyguards to them? Why? And for that matter, why us?"<p>

"Naruto because of his...problem," Kakashi lamely explained. Sakura had already informed them of Tsunade's accepting her as an apprentice, and thus it was just their three-man team.

"We know, Kakashi Sensei," Naruto dully told the Copy Ninja. "Sasuke _teme_ saw it."

"Because he contains the Kyuubi?" Sasuke stated. "I can see why. But why me?"

Kakashi was pleased at how his student emphasised 'the Kyuubi', as if the two were different entities. Indeed, Orochimaru had a lot to answer for. "Because of the...mental trauma."

"I can assure you that I don't feel homicidal at all," Sasuke dryly replied. "Kakashi, there's more to this mission, right?"

"True, Baa Chan wouldn't send mere Genin on this mission," Naruto slowly stated, comprehension finally dawning. "It's a B rank, maybe even A rank, or S rank, if we face other shinobi, right, Kakashi Sensei?"

"Right," the Jounin replied, nodding. "On the surface, we are bodyguards. What we're actually doing is finding out their exact intentions and powers. They are capable of feats previously thought impossible, if they can actually control the _bijuu_..."

"They can," Naruto spoke up. "Not just a genjutsu either. Kyuubi was really screaming in pain when Yuugioh did some funny thing." He indicated the motions with his fingers and accurately described Kyuubi's fear of a normal playing card...

"A portable prison," Kakashi stated, almost sweating as the implication of someone carrying one of the nine tailed beasts in their pocket sank in. "They're trapping the _bijuu _in cards. Easy to hold and hide, and can be used in an instant...a most portable weapon."

"Why do you make it sound like Cardcaptor Sakura?" Naruto asked.

_How do you even know the plot of Cardcaptor Sakura, _was on everyone else's mind.

"You know, when you say it like that, it really does sound eerily like _Cardcaptor Sakura_," Sasuke muttered.

"So, we must not fail on this mission." Kakashi started, rising up from his chair. "I'm going to the Hokage Tower; two of the four, including Yuugioh, are arranging an appointment with the Hokage today."

* * *

><p>"We'd like to arrange an appointment with the Hokage," Yami told the receptionist.<p>

"The Hokage will see you now," a nearby Chuunin nodded in their direction. "She pushed back all of today's appointments for this. And called the Council Elders. _And_ called Danzo. You must be pretty important."

"Perhaps," Yami non-committally replied, following the elite ninja's lead towards the Hokage's office, while in truth he and his light were pretty surprised.

Tsunade downed a cup of sake she had managed to smuggle into her office. After all, this was the deciding meeting of the Kyuubi's fate. Assuredly not Naruto's fate. It still did not mean that the sake was not needed. Plus, after Yuugioh's warning she found it impossible to sleep, attempting to suppress the instincts which screamed _there are __monsters under my bed, run._ There wasn't any space between the floor and her futon for a piece of paper to go unnoticed, never mind monsters, but the fear persisted nevertheless.

On either side of the Hokage's desk stood the Council Elders Homura and Koharu, oddly quiet, and by the windows stood an impatient Danzo, also oddly quiet. They could, as shinobi, sense the dangerous power approaching at walking speed.

The door opened to admit the two she had met yesterday, Yuugioh and Yuugi. Yuugioh's piercing eyes seemingly scanning the room before flicking to Danzo, Homura and Koharu in order of succession. The killing intent was gone, replaced by cautious wariness, and Tsunade caught Danzo stiffen in her peripheral vision. Yuugi, on the other hand, seemed curious and cautious, but hardly anything else. Both wore matching black vests under a khaki flak jacket, with khaki pants and multiple belts and dog collars on. The only difference other than mannerisms was that Yuugioh wore a red fingerless glove on his left hand and black combat boots while Yuugi had on open-toed sandals and wore the other glove on his right hand.

Side by side, they were contrasting mirror images, a stunning sight to see.

"Come in," Tsunade rose, indicating to two chairs in front of her desk.

"Hokage Sama," they greeted as one.

"This are Elders Mitokado and Utatane of the Konoha Council, and over there is Elder Shimura. They will be here to oversee the case."

The two exchanged significant looks before sitting.

"Let us embrace brevity," Yuugioh began. "I have some misplaced property that somehow found its way into your village and has been sealed for twelve years. The seal is in such a way that its removal would likely kill the undo-er and breaking the seal breaks both the vessel and the thing. Needless to say, this is extremely vexing," he added, emphasising on the last word.

"To clarify to the elders, please state the property under dispute," Tsunade replied as per protocol, secretly anticipating the old fogeys' reaction.

"I am speaking of the _Kyuubi no Yonkou_." Yuugioh airily stated.

There was the sound of wood cracking, several gasps and chokes from the Elders and above. In surprise, Yuugi looked up to see several elite shinobi clutched to the ceiling, trying not to laugh.

"This is the most ludicrous thing I have ever heard," Homura scoffed, turning to leave. "You have wasted our time, young man."

"I think not," Yuugioh replied, inclining his head. "I had a conversation before the Hokage herself and two other shinobi who were present last night to prove my dominion over the the _bijuu _under dispute."

To the Elders' shock, Tsunade slowly nodded. "Morino Ibiki and Hatake Kakashi should be able to confirm his words," she stated.

"But the _bijuu..._it's a demon!" Koharu cried. "How can it belong to a mortal?"

"It reports to a boss, which then reports to another boss, which then reports to us," he flippantly replied. "Does that satisfactorily answer your questions?"

"This is a very serious claim," Danzo gravely stated. "Do you have any proof?"

"The witness of the sitting Hokage and two other ninja is not enough?" Yuugioh stated calmly. "What more is needed, the Kyuubi's word? If you wanted him here you could've asked."

"Even so, there is no way we can remove the seal without killing Uzumaki Naruto," Tsunade firmly replied. "Your property is thus irretrievable unless you can undo the seal without killing him."

"Is this a challenge, Hokage Sama?" Yuugioh's voice grew dangerously soft. "I could do it without killing him. It's just that I'll be consigning him to a fate worse than death if I do."

"What Yuugioh here is requesting," Yuugi took over, glaring at his partner, "is that we are given the go-ahead to recover the Kyuubi. We will then be staying in the village to do so. We come in peace and a position of trust to do so. We are not endangering your village's shinobi, nor are we threatening your people."

"We cannot allow the Kyuubi to roam free again!" Koharu heatedly protested. "The last two decades saw a peace brought on by the sealing of the _bijuu_, instead of te widespread destruction that spread in their wake. Now every hidden village holds at least one Jinchuuriki. To remove Konoha's only serve to disrupt the balance of power amongst the five villages!"

"Yes, I fully intend to send all of them back to their world," Yuugioh coldly replied. "It is just that you have two vessels here in Konoha. It is an extremely opportune moment to take back both of the tailed beasts."

"Koharu is right," Danzo murmured. "How do we know that you will not turn the Kyuubi against us instead?"

"You don't," Yuugioh replied. "Just like I do not trust you to allow us to leave this village without joining your side. I am merely here to retrieve the Kyuubi, my property. If I cannot come to it, it must come to me. By any means necessary. If it is any consolation, I am prepared to compensate Konoha and promise not to allow the Kyuubi to ever harm your village ever again. However, I do not take any other sides, only mine."

"What can you give us to compensate for the lives lost fighting the Kyuubi?" Homura stated, his voice rising with every word as he turned towards Yuugioh. "So many died in the senseless violence to kill the immortal, our hero died for this cause! You cannot expect us to hand over the Fourth Hokage's legacy so easily!"

Yuugioh sighed openly. "Name your price. I will try to fulfil it if I can."

"You..." they didn't get to say anything before a force like a hundred anvils crashed down on them, almost sending them to their knees. Shinobi dropped from the ceiling in shock, some dashing for the Hokage's door upon landing, whether on their feet, back or front. Only Yuugioh and Yuugi were unaffected, enjoying each other's company.

"_I _am one of six who control the shadows and their denizens," Yuugioh pleasantly told the shocked Danzo and Tsunade, Koharu and Homura having been knocked unconscious by willpower alone. "_I _am someone who sees the _bijuu_ as property and almost unnoticeable property at that. Right now, I am respecting the office of the Hokage and the reputation of the Legendary Sannin by not immediately ordering the Kyuubi to release itself or kidnapping the vessel. I am also beginning to lose my patience. Is there any other queries?"

The only conscious people, Tsunade and Danzo, mutely shook their heads. Tsunade was still gripping the broken Hokage desk, her left hand refusing to unclench from the wood-grain.

Yuugioh raised an eyebrow at the sight. "No? Good. I hope to receive your reply soon, Hokage Sama. Good day. _Aibou_, come," they turned around. "Perhaps we can find the shinobi lady somewhere around soon..."

"Be careful, Tsunade Sama," Danzo quietly murmured as the door closed. "They scare me."

Shimura Danzo was hardly a man who scared easily, having run Root ANBU and trained several emotionless shinobi, she knew. To have scared the 'war-hawk' as he was known in the Konoha Council did not sit well with her, even if this provided conclusive proof of their claims.


	6. Chapter 6

"Is that a _kekkei_ _genkai_?" Anko asked as she winced slightly in pain, the card on her neck glowing a dark green. The drain the process took on her was completely worth the prospect of being finally free of the snake Sannin. Never mind the odd looks from the ninjas surrounding them who gave them the occasional odd look.

"Not as far as I know," Yuugi replied, peeling off the now-filled card. "Do you want to keep it as a souvenir? I understand that some doctors do that, Mitarashi San."

Her expression turned from tired to sombre as she stood up, tired but free. She held her hand out for the card. "Thank you," she sincerely thanked Yami.

"I did not do it for you," he replied warily as she took the card. "I did it for two reasons."

Anko nodded. "I know the first one's to prove your power, but the second?"

"My _aibou_ wanted it," Yuugioh shrugged, expression softening as his eyes wandered to Yuugi's studiously studying the menu. "What my _aibou_ wants, he gets. Even if it means wrestling a seal that was injected into a body off into a card by pure will alone."

From the look on his face, Mitarashi Anko had no doubt as to that declaration's truth that the crimson-eyed youth would commit extreme mass murder if his partner so much as asked. "So, what's your real name?" she emphasised. As a special Jounin, she had excellent hearing. He had hesitated on giving his name before, and surely no sane parent would name their child 'Yuugioh'.

"I have many names, and they are feared by demons, even though they hide in my midst," he shrugged, standing up. "Either way, you have my name now."

"What's good to eat here?" Yuugi asked as the waiter finally got around to their table to take their orders.

* * *

><p>It was widely known in Konoha that Uzumaki Naruto absolutely hated hospitals. Nurses and doctors alike complained that having him in the hospital raised the noise levels to unprecedented levels. The fact that he was hyped up on sweets sent from various fan-girls to Sasuke, who had made the mistake of foisting it off on his team-mate, certainly didn't help things.<p>

By lunch, Sasuke was ready to abandon his emotionless facade and face-palm. Being confined to bed rest with a hyperactive loud-mouth ninja in a 'kill me' orange jumpsuit was the worst torture ever. Sasuke privately suspected that the ANBU left Naruto here to torture him. It was either that, or face the possibility that being locked in a room with Naruto on sugar high was worse than any ANBU prescribed torture. The only reason he refrained from saying it out loud was a deep desire not to give the sadists at T&I any ideas.

Prior to this, Sasuke had never been forced to share a ward with Naruto, hence he never really realised how irritating Naruto could be on recuperating patients. Naruto's conversation while stuck in hospital seemed to revolve around bills, ramen, worrying about funds, ramen, worrying about the rest, ramen delivery... the only relief was when Naruto went to pester the rest of the retrieval team, who were stuck in the hospital for at least a week.

The horror. Recuperating ninjas were hardly the best of patients; in contrast, young ninjas on the mend could have made the worst patients. Sasuke was only glad that Naruto had dashed off -or hobbled as quickly as the crutches allowed- for lunch back at his own room, thus leaving him to eat in peace. He would have complained if the other option was the stifling silence of the hospital which he loathed, even if it was precious silence. As it were, he could occupy himself abusing Naruto.

He was thus very surprised to see his window open to admit two white-haired youths. Vaguely, he remembered them from the Valley of the End as accompanying the one named Yuugioh.

"Security really needs help," one of the two, the one with sharper features commented as he helped the other down. "We have ourselves one injured ninja here and hardly any guards. You'd think they place more guards around their wounded."

"_Yami_, this room is..." the other, softer-featured youth was about the reply before being yanked towards the door by the one addressed as Yami.

"Right, let's see...second to the right..." the first one muttered as he opened the door, pulling the other, who gave Sasuke an apologetic look as they left.

Sasuke blinked before returning to his lunch.

It was then that the full situation hit him. Lunch tray flying as he leapt off the bed, he resolutely ignored his body's pain and dashed for the room second to the right from his.

The _Jinchuuriki_ room.

_Naruto, I haven't beat you yet, don't die now, dammit!_

* * *

><p>It took two hours to extract Shukaku from the one named Gaara.<p>

Well, it actually took five minutes to get Gaara to anywhere near comprehension and coherency and to explain the situation, one second for him to agree, and the rest to fully extract the demon, leaving behind bits of demonic chakra in Gaara's body to acclimatise it to the removal over the next six months. Finally, as Bakura stomped the last bit of the sand demon into the card, much to Gaara's consternation, a loud hiss and two loud and angry exclamations from outside the room made itself known.

"Damn they broke the barrier." Bakura swore. "Kyuubi, I'll be back for you later," he muttered towards the door's direction, pocketing the demon-containing card.

"Gaara San, you might want to send news to your village quickly." Ryou told a weary Sand shinobi. "You yourself would be unable to move for a while.

"Oh, and tell this Chiyo, whoever they are, that their sealing needs work." Bakura added. "We don't have time." he brusquely changed the subject as he stomped the last bit of sand off his black combat boots while making complex motions towards Gaara's direction. _"Hikari,_ let's go."

"Why?" Ryou curiously asked.

"I left Curse of Dragon outside, and it tends to get noisily pyrotechnic if we don't get back soon." Bakura glared at the door which the shinobi were now pounding. "Damn. Right, we'll have to make a run for it."

"_Yami_...?"

"Let's see, killing would ruin our plans, and Pharaoh's gonna be pissed if I seal any of them, and the purpose is defeated, so...we have to do this non-lethally," Bakura muttered, pulling a card from a deck holster at his hips.

"Diabound," he commanded to the fiend that appeared. "Take us to safety."

The fiend unfurled its leathery wings and grabbed both _hikari _and_ yami, _preparing to fly through the walls. Gaara was about to speak when it passed through the walls, leaving not a mark behind.

The door flew open to admit Naruto and Sasuke, both holding their deadliest jutsu at the ready to pummel the guy to within an inch of his life. "Where's the guy?" Naruto demanded.

Gaara didn't answer, just staring at the blank wall through which they escaped.

* * *

><p>"Target secured," Bakura spoke to the Copycat he conjured the moment they got to one of many of Konoha's empty training fields. Within the Spellcaster's mirror-like face was reflected the face of Yuugi and Yami, both nodding.<p>

"Excellent work. Who saw you?" Yami asked.

"The brat with hair like a duck's ass," Bakura replied. "And the vessel. No one else. But the piles of sand left behind is a pretty big clue."

Yami frowned. "I see. Other than securing the relatively less secure Ichibi, which has been handled, I must research more on seals. Bakura, you and Ryou can...wander around. See the sights, the smells, the local news...maybe even overhear some ninja gossip..."

"You're basically asking me to snoop, aren't you?" Bakura snapped.

"Wall Shadow is doing that," Yami shrugged. "What I am asking is for local news. Such as where the _important scrolls are_ and _how to get them._"

Bakura nodded, awestruck in comprehension. "Awesome!" he grinned. "Let's start thieving!"

"Bakura!" Ryou protested. "If you want to steal you don't say it out loud! And don't get caught!"

Bakura grinned at the petite light. "Why, Ryou," he purred. "Since when have I gotten caught? Have you no faith in me?" He cried, mockingly grinning. "Tell me, against all the deviousness of the Thief King and these shinobi and their paltry tricks, who do you think will succeed?"

'I'm just saying that thieves don't usually announce what they're going to steal in broad daylight!" Ryou protested.

"What, no protest against stealing in general?" Bakura smirked. "Wow, I'm really rubbing off on you. Excellent. Soon I'll make you wear that leather..."

"_Yami_..." Ryou growled.

"In private," Bakura hurriedly amended. "Baby steps and all that."

Yuugi sighed. "Please tell me you two aren't playing the romantic couple in public..."

Bakura looked around. Aside from the chirps of cicadas in summer, there were hardly any other sounds, and not a single human being in sight. "Nope, we're not, by your definition of public." he replied.

"_Right,_" the former Pharaoh didn't sound convinced at all. "So, you would _please _focus on stealing that stuff, while we see what we can find in this pile of books and scrolls, for lack of a better description for the state of this _library._ You get until tonight to rest. Pharaoh signing out."

"Thief King signing out," Bakura sighed, deactivating the Copycat. The Spellcaster soon dissolved back into a card which he snatched out of thin air. "The Shadow Realm better get to inventing cell-phones soon...now, _hikari,_" he growled in a completely different way to a rapidly more nervous Ryou, "let's get to that _training..._"

* * *

><p>"We have gotten news from the hospital," Tsunade reported to the Council Elders upon the ANBU messenger's disappearance. "It seems like Bakura Ryou and Bakura Yami were sighed entering from Uchiha Sasuke's window. Uchiha, due to his injuries, was unable to realise their intentions until they had barricaded themselves into the Jinchuuriki room with a strange sort of barrier. Uzumaki Naruto was reportedly in the room of Nara Shikamaru and Akimichi Chouji, and thus only Sabaku no Gaara was in the room.<p>

"Two hours later, the aforementioned Genin and one Chuunin were able to break down the barrier, only to see a fully conscious if exhausted Gaara surrounded by piles of sand and no sign of the intruders. From Gaara's account, it seems like they have elaborated upon their intentions with the Ichibi, upon which, with his consent, they sealed the Ichibi into a card and left by summoning a demon with the upper half of a man, the lower half being the upper body of a snake inclusive of a mouth, and bat-like wings to spirit them through the wall and escape."

A stunned silence greeted her conclusion.

"Furthermore, I have just received notice from the _daimyo _office of Rice-field Country," Tsunade shuffled a few papers about her place. "The formerly corrupt _daimyo _has been replaced after Inari Castle was pillaged and sacked, reportedly by two demons, and the palace completely levelled without a single trace, save for a field of completely blank wasteland where it once stood. The current _daimyo_ is a former Konoha refugee, in gratitude of the shelter the village has provided him in hiding him from the former _daimyo,_ has cut the funding of the Hidden Village of Sound in half."

"And what do these two news have in common?" Homura demanded.

"Although sketchy, we have here two artist sketches from the descriptions of the surrounding civilians," Tsunade handed them around.

There was a round of gasps from shocked clan heads and Elders alike.

"Also, consider that the Bakura twins and the Mutou brothers entered from the Valley of the End, directly bordering Rice-field and Fire Country." Tsunade continued, her voice level despite the mounting trepidation in the room. "It is reasonable to assume, from the similarity of description and ability, that at least two were responsible for the _levelling_ of Inari Castle."

"H-how?" A council member pointed out. "The ANBU tactical room has pointed out how well protected Inari Castle is! How did they do it!"

"We do not know," Koharu shook her head. "I now call a vote on the motion of if we should allow the Bakura twins and the Mutou brothers to take back the Kyuubi, which they insist is their property and should be returned to them."

A round of conversation and protests went up at that. Several present had seen the Kyuubi lay waste to the village twelve years previously, helpless to do anything but hope and pray. With the Kyuubi sealed, there was a general sense of relief; the strongest of the demons chained and at their mercy in a boy they could mold into a weapon or do away with. To have people claim that demon as their property was unsettling, if not downright scary.

"Do we have proof of such a outrageous claim?" another member protested.

"Before the witness of Morino Ibiki, Hatake Kakashi and the Hokage herself," Tsunade coldly stated, "The Kyuubi took on a spectral form of its own chakra and held a coherent conversation with one of the four, acknowledging his ownership and fear of them. The Ichibi also appeared and stated so."

"It could have been a hoax," one council member reasonably pointed out.

Tsunade sighed. This was going to take a long while...


	7. Chapter 7

Maito Gai and his current only full-functioning student Tenten could do nothing but freeze at the power spread throughout the training grounds as they watched the two white-haired strangers fight.

"_Grief Tablet_!" the slightly more evil-looking one snarled, as a stone tablet appeared.

"_Spell-Shattering Arrow!_" the other shouted as an arrow appeared out of thin air and aimed itself at the arrow before shooting itself, shattering the tablet. He looked to the side as the shards fell, where a lamp with a hand with a flame burning on its fingertips floated at the side. "Almost out of time..."

"You think, Ryou?" the first one snarled. "_Souls of the Forgotten_! Swarm!"

Ryou seemed to panic as purple spirits arose around him, trapping him in.

"_Shadow Spell_!"the other yelled. Black chains leapt into being and flew straight for the purple spirits surrounding a strange, rainbow coloured reptile. The other white-haired one cursed. "_Clone Dragon_. Where the he- Ryou!"

For Ryou had just dashed out from the side, aiming a card at him. "_Spellbinding Circle!" _A circle of light began to form around him.

"_Trap Jammer,_ dammit!" the other swore. Another circle of light appeared around the first circle and broke both circles. "_Kunai with Chain_!" A chain with a sharp piece appeared and encircled Ryou, preventing all forms of escape. "Gotcha!"

"Hey, _Yami_!" Ryou protested.

"That," the other smirked as he yanked on the chain, "was keeping with the rules. Fair's fair, now come here."

It was amazing, Tenten reflected, how the pair could act the lovey-dovey couple right after levelling the training ground.

Beside her, Gai had already fainted from the 'power of extreme youth!' as he had declared right before fainting.

* * *

><p>"Argh!" Yami half-yelled, throwing the scroll down on the table.<p>

"Yami?" Yuugi questioned from his pile of scrolls. "Any luck?"

"No," Yami shook his head. "From what I can tell, the seal is a prison, but specifics would be needed to reveal how to break it. Only from there then we can worry about how to subdue it."

"It...is possible to subdue it without...?" Yuugi played with his fingers nervously. "I mean, it's important that the _bijuu_ are sealed, but the shinobi are not involved..."

"You mean if we can do it without collateral damage," Yami nodded. "With a wide enough area, yes. With enough action and speed, we would not even need such a wide area. But we would have to call upon a monster along the lines of Exodia or Zorc."

"Well, if it's possible..." Yuugi bit his bottom lip, sighing. "But...you'll be fine, right?"

"As long as you live, _aibou_, I will be fine," Yami assured, smiling. "Neither of us can live if the other dies. That is the curse we now live."

"Really?" Yuugi's eyes widened. "So being bound to each other is a curse?"

"No, my _chibi_ Chan," Yami laughed, pulling Yuugi closer. "Unless our eyes wander elsewhere. And I don't intend to let my eyes wander away, so unless you intend to be unfaithful, _miw-sher.._.?"

"Yami!"

The guardians of the library tactfully ignored the pair.

* * *

><p>"Team Kakashi," Tsunade began. "I am assigning you a C Rank mission, ranking slated to change on demand. The mission objective is to find out about our guests in the village while being their bodyguards. Shizune."<p>

The Hokage's assistant held up a discreet photograph of the group, taken from Konoha Customs. "Nara Shikamaru has identified the shorter two as Mutou Yuugi and Bakura Ryou respectively, and the taller one with white hair as Bakura Yami. The taller twin of Mutou Yuugi is identified as Yuugioh, although we suspect that is a pseudonym. They have come to Konoha, ostensibly to retrieve their property which they claim is the _bijuu _within Naruto."

"Kyuubi acknowledges it," Naruto confirmed. "Although he's terrified, really."

The group blinked. "I see," Tsunade stated, masking her reaction. "They have revealed an aptitude at summoning birds, warriors and golems. It is uncertain if they can summon more besides. Besides that, a high degree of knife-handling skill, killing intent to match the Kyuubi and a degree of protection against Genjutsu, Nara has deduced that they are more or less civilians. Mutou Yuugi and Bakura Ryou he confirms as almost definitely civilian, and that Bakura Yami and Yuugioh are the main dangers of the group. We have also received news which indicate that Bakura Yami and Yuugioh are the probable parties behind the pillage, sacking and levelling of Inari Castle and the assassination of the _daimyo_ of Rice-field Country five days ago."

Kakashi's lone visible eye widened. "Alone?"

"On the surface," Tsunade nodded. "Shikamaru notes that, although Yuugioh and Bakura Yami are the main powers, they listen to the opinions of Mutou Yuugi and Bakura Ryou. Upon further observation during their travel back to the village via a giant green falcon," Naruto and a brave-faced Sasuke twitched involuntarily, "he concluded that they are almost not a danger, save that they command absolute and unwavering loyalty in the other two. Focus around Mutou Yuugi and Bakura Ryou. Mutou Yuugi and Yuugioh are in the Hokage Tower library studying on seals. The Bakurae are at training ground eleven, presumably training in their esoteric skills."

The door flew open as the Green Beast of Konohagakure flew in with the 'Dynamic Entry!'. "Hokage Sama! Bad news! Training ground eleven has been flattened in a span of ten minutes by two white-haired strangers!"

"Those are our guests, Gai!" Tsunade yelled, standing up as Tenten followed her sensei, depositing two white-haired young men on the floor. One turned doe-like eyes up to Tsunade while the other levelled a glare at the two shinobi.

"This. Is It." A near-sibilant hiss escaped the other as he levelled his hands at them.

* * *

><p>"Aibou, let's move!" Yami exclaimed, standing up and stalking towards the entrance.<p>

"Wha-?" Yuugi could barely finish before he was dragged along.

"I forgot to tell Bakura not to seal anyone's soul!" Yami explained as the pair moved towards the staircase in tandem. "And I just felt the Soul Rip starting! Do you _want_ to retrieve shinobi from his cards?"

"Crap!" Yuugi tried to run faster.

The pair barely made it in time to intercept the ball of dark energy Bakura was readying in his hand in mid-air and save some innocent shinobi from being sealed.

"Pharaoh!" Bakura barked, annoyed.

"Do you _want_ to explain what would have happened?" Yami pointed out.

There was a slight pause. "No..."

"Precisely. Therefore, it is not in your best interest to send them anywhere," Yami reasonably persuaded.

"Erm..." Tsunade coughed. "My apologies for your mistreatment at the hands of my shinobi, but news of your arrival is not exactly circulated amongst shinobi. Thus, Gai did not know that you were guests and presumably believed you to be...pranksters, I think. Continuing on, you will be assigned Team Seven for as long as you stay within the village confines."

"It is...appreciated," Yami replied coolly, studying the three shinobi.

"Let us take the opportunity to continue negotiations away from my council," Tsunade motioned for Gai and Tenten to leave, the two shinobi closing the door as they did. Tsunade performed some hand seals to activate the silencing jutsu before she leaned forward over her desk. "As you have stated before, you have come for the _bijuu_. However, I can now inform you that the nine demons have been sealed into shinobi as well. Each of the Five Great Shinobi Powers possesses at least one _Jinchuuriki_, as these human containers are known. Naruto is one, as is Sabaku no Gaara, from whom your friend extracted the Ichibi from today."

Yami shot a look at the suddenly nervous white-haired pair. "And? It was done with the permission of the shinobi in question, and the shinobi was not hurt, correct?"

"Gaara is not Konoha's shinobi," Tsunade shook her head. "He is the youngest son of the Kazekage and the Ichibi he hold- held," she corrected, "was widely considered Suna property. Suna could accuse us of stealing from them should Gaara return without an adequate explanation."

"We will solve that in good time," Yami nodded. "Do continue with your concerns."

"There has recently been formed an organisation called Akatsuki," Tsunade began. "Although they are a mercenary organisation on the surface, in actual fact all their members are S-class nuke-nin. Their aim has turned towards capturing and sealing all the _bijuu_. Members have come for Naruto before." Her eyes turned towards the blonde ninja in question, who stood straight up, the playful kid replaced with the serious shinobi. "If they capture him, they will take the _bijuu_ and kill him."

"I see," Yami smiled thinly. "It seems that in this case our interests overlap."

"I propose an alliance between us for this," Tsunade inclined her head. "We will give you the necessary information and quite possibly assistance, while you would provide the power."

"Thus, you would have us kill the Akatsuki in exchange for such information," Yami nodded slowly. "Quite advantageous to your village, Hokage Sama. We would require time to discuss this."

"In a gesture of faith, I will warn you," Tsunade sighed. "Elder Shimura had a cadre of specially trained shinobi under his command called the Root ANBU. Although they are officially disbanded, knowing him, it is highly likely that they are hidden. He would most likely order your deaths to secure the balance of power between the shinobi countries."

"Thank you for the warning," Yami courteously replied as he turned to Bakura, the shadows cast over his face deepening. "Bakura, did you hear that? If anyone attacks us, we have free reign."

"And if the light is attacked?" Bakura replied, his own shadows darkening. Kakashi had the impression that these people didn't need bodyguards at all.

"Then, mercy is forgotten." The ease of long practice was obvious from the flat tone the words were spoken in. Yuugi moved closer to his darkness as did Ryou to his, light touching the dark in a gesture of comfort.

Tsunade saw red eyes once more as the shadows flickered away from the face of the ancient king. "Do inform Elder Shimura on our behalf that we know where he sleeps, and the shadows are not on his side."

Tsunade gulped internally, Kakashi's lone visible eye widened, and Sasuke's eyes narrowed as the four left.

"What did that mean?" a clueless Naruto asked.

"It meant," Sasuke slowly stated, "that if he tries anything, no matter how he hides, they will find him, and when he is vulnerable, they will kill him."

* * *

><p>"You will join Team Kakashi in the guarding of these four."<p>

"Yes."

"While under cover, you will find out their abilities, their strengths, their weaknesses, and you will report it to me."

"Yes."

"You will be assigned a new name for this mission."

"Yes."

"Very well, now go...Sai."

"...Yes."


	8. Chapter 8

_**Time Skip!**_

* * *

><p>It was in the Hokage library three weeks later that the bodyguards met up with their charges, a pale black-haired young shinobi tagging along behind Kakashi. The other two narrowed their eyes at the newcomer but otherwise said nothing. Sasuke surprising them all with a heartfelt thanks towards Yami, who had the immediate but possibly accurate opinion that the Uchiha would never have done that, but so far, so good.<p>

And...Kakashi was late.

_Big_ surprise.

"Now that we're all here, we should begin a round of introductions." Ryou shyly spoke up as Bakura cackled happily at a recipe for explosive tags in a book. "I'm Bakura Ryou. You can call me Ryou."

"I'm Bakura Yami," Bakura spoke up as Ryou elbowed him. "Call me Bakura. _Never_ address me as Yami. Only Ryou gets to do that to this Bakura Sama and get away with it." The air of malevolence only reinforced the less-than-sane impression the shinobi had of him.

"I'm Mutou Yuugi," Yuugi introduced himself. "Nice to meet you."

"Yami no Yuugi," the other Yuugi stated flatly amidst piles of tomes. "Also addressed as Yuugioh, or Yami. Address me by any other title and I will do something." The look indicated that the _something_ was bound to be scary.

"Hatake Kakashi," the Jounin followed the set protocol.

"Uchiha Sasuke."

"I'm Uzumaki Naruto, and I'm going to be Hokage!" Naruto pumped hi fist into the air as he introduced himself.

"Sai," the newcomer introduced himself. If the rest found anything odd they didn't mention it.

"As the Hokage might have briefed you by now, we are intending to go after the _bijuu_," Yami began. "The Hokage has kindly allowed us the use of the archives and maps to plot out an expedition, where we will be using Konoha as a rest stop between destinations due to its central position. Our first stop is Taki no Kuni."

"Why not the larger countries, Yami San?" Sai sensibly pointed out. "This would after all correct the imbalance of power."

"Konoha is still recovering from an invasion, I noticed." Yami pointed out. "Therefore, our actions are now limited given that my _aibou_ is loath to drag an uninvolved country into a war because of our quest. Taki no Kuni is the only country that holds a _Jinchuuriki, _does not have the resources to investigate too thoroughly, and who is under threat, since this Akatsuki organisation would no doubt have picked up on this line of reasoning and are preparing to capture the _Jinchuuriki_ as we speak. That is only the first reason."

"The second is...?" Naruto prompted.

"By examining Konohagakure records of Akatsuki activity, their actions are centred around...here." Yami pointed the indicated spot on the map.

Right beside Taki no Kuni.

"We leave for Taki in three days," Yami got up. "Meanwhile, I will show you the possible threats faced during this expedition."

* * *

><p>"I am quite sure that your Hokage has filled you in on the mission parameters," Yami began once they have reached the not-levelled training ground assigned for such purposes. "There remains the obvious problem of combat and capture. Capture is easy enough, with this," A card appeared in his hand. He showed them the card, showing a picture of the curse seal. "I removed this from Uchiha Sasuke's neck."<p>

Sasuke blinked, fingers automatically moving to his neck. Sai's eyes widened as they flicked from the card to Sasuke and back to the card.

"Can this card seal anything?" Kakashi enquired, already thinking of the application.

"Only one thing per card, but yes. However, only the four of us may use it." Yami pulled out another card, this one showing the _tanuki_ of nightmares about to slash down. "I extracted it from Gaara San. Meet the Ichibi no Shukaku."

The shinobi swallowed and tried not to look obvious shuffling away from the seemingly innocent card that, a week ago, had caused a diplomatic throw-down between Konoha and Suna, finally stopped by the combined efforts of the new Kazekage, Gaara, the Hokage and very persuasive arguments (read: threats). Kakashi lifted up his _hitai-ate_ but could see nothing unusual about the cardboard. "There's nothing..."

"_Ichibi no Shukaku_!" Yami declared.

On the chakra plane, the card lit up like a miniature sun as Kakashi hurriedly pulled down his hitai-ate to save it from being blinded.

The giant _tanuki _towered above them, radiating chakra, killing intent, and Kakashi fervently wished he had time to rewrite his will as his students, including the poker-faced Sai, gasped around him, frozen by sheer killer intent. Naruto and Sasuke gulped as they came face-to-face with Shukaku for the second time. And it seemed that Shukaku had somehow become more malevolent, an air of utter bloodlust and killing intent hanging about it as winds blew and howled, as if the Shukaku Naruto once fought against with the help of the Toad Boss was a mere watered-down version of the true demon of the winds. "**Heh, I'm free!**"

Only the four were more or less unaffected, Bakura was even bored.

"Down," Yami commanded. Grumbling, the _tanuki_ lowered its body to ground level without a temper tantrum. "Thank you for your assistance with this practical demonstration. Have we interrupted anything?"

"**No, don't send me-**"

Yami snapped his fingers, at which Shukaku vanished in a burst of purple mist.

"Anything trapped within this card is under our command, as you can tell." Yami continued, oblivious to the shinobis' panic.

Within moments, ANBU officers and several Jounin materialised, armed for bear, and some of them were still shaking.

Yami face-palmed. "I asked for a ground large enough so that this wouldn't happen..."

"What was that chakra?" Tsunade jumped onto the scene, hands fisted.

Yami waved the card. "_Ichibi no Shukaku_. The reason why I wanted an area further away, so that no one would sound the alert if we were to summon anything."

"A practical demonstration, then," Tsunade summarised. "Do continue."

His eyes narrowed. "If you say so. _Ichibi no-_"

"Yami," Yuugi admonished, looking at the shaking shinobi. "Perhaps a smaller-scale summoning would be better."

"Yes, _aibou,_ if you say so," Yami agreed, pulling out another card. "Come forth, _Genju Oh Gazeru_!"

A burst of light, a miniature sun on the chakra plane and the lion-like beast with a horn on its head materialised, crouching on all fours and growling, brown fur and black mane standing out intimidatingly. Several of the shinobis' weapons clinked.

"_Gazeru_," Yami indicated. "Incapacitate Kakashi."

Said Jounin moved quickly as the beast bounded in his direction, forming hand seals. "_Katon: Goukakyu no Jutsu!_"

The beast merely increased its speed in a running jump, leaping clear over the fireball to land on Kakashi in a blur of black and brown. A few strategically placed claws and teeth on various sensitive and/or important areas and the Jounin could not move, even when he swiped a kunai over _Gazeru_'s throat to see only a wisp of purple mist as the beast still stood unharmed.

"These beings are like the _bijuu_;_ y_ou cannot kill them by mortal means." Yami elaborated. "Only a _hikari_ or _yami_ may decide their fate should they break the rules. Of course, there are other markers to potential people capable of summoning them, but we'll leave it there. The point is, if I ask them to kill you, they will do it, and continue, and it will be extremely difficult for you to banish them until their job is done. Any other questions? Excellent. _Gazeru_, you can let up now."

It growled in assent, moving off the sweating Jounin's body towards the two almost-twins. Yuugi patted its head, the beast growling and leaning into the touch. "Thank you, Phantom Beast King, for your assistance rendered," Yami politely said. "The shinobi required such demonstration for their own purposes."

Gazeru growled something to him, unintelligible to all but the four.

Yami frowned. "Are you sure? I thought that was merely the Kyuubi."

Several shinobi tensed but were dissuaded by a shake of the Hokage's head. _Gazeru_ growled again.

"If you say so, then. I and Bakura will take this in hand; we cannot afford another Malik after all."

Growl.

"True, the child does not have access to the Shadows...yet. It is only a matter of _when_ basic control descends."

A softer growl this time, as the monster dissolved into purple mist. Yuugi sighed, turning to the shinobi. "Well, I guess it's time to educate our bodyguards on possible threats. Hokage Sama, will you and your men be staying?"

"Perhaps some of my men could also participate?" Tsunade requested as some ANBU began to beg off leave for their own missions. "The Jounin against some of your select...summons should do."

"Troublesome," Sarutobi Asuma grumbled, pulling out his knives.

"If we must," Kurenai Yuuhi took on a battle stance.

"I'd like to redeem myself," Kakashi pulled out a kunai and got into position.

"Looks fun," Mitarashi Anko grinned sadistically as she pulled out her own kunai.

"Ever since I saw these, I've been wanting to go up against them!" Gai punched the air with his fist. "Let's go!"

"Combat is more of my and Bakura's area," Yami stood straighter, his eyes narrowing. "Let us thus even the fight. Bakura, what do you say?"

Bakura drew a five-card hand from his deck holster in reply, grinning madly. "_Headless Knight, White Magical Hat, Ghost of __Nightmare!"_

A headless suit of armour materialised and bowed down to Bakura. Nearby, a man dressed n a white cape and top hat nodded, while a skeleton surrounded by dark mists and armed with a purple sword and shield misted into existence and grinned in Naruto's direction. Said ninja had hidden behind a bemused Sasuke and Sai, who couldn't believe that the brash shinobi was scared of ghosts.

_Then again,_ they reflected at the sight._ If we weren't shinobi, we'd have fled at the sight too._

Asuma swallowed at the sight. "Wow, that's some ugly summons."

"Terms are friendly combat only," Yami stated, giving Bakura a significant look. "Since Bakura's monsters technically cannot die at all, it would mean that you cannot attack Yuugi or Ryou, but Bakura and I are fair game. If you attack either of them, let us just say that you will not like the consequences. Feel free to inflict damage on the monsters. The aim is to render the other side unable to fight. Is that clear?"

"Not going to simulate battle conditions?" Kakashi asked. "No shinobi is going to follow the rules of combat on the field, you know."

Yami grinned. It was not in a nice way. "You try it and find out."

The Jounin internally shivered under his cool facade.

"_Candle of Fate!_" Ryou commanded, looking distinctly unhappy. A blue-coloured hand with a flame burning from a candle held in its fingers on a lamp-plate materialised. "You have until the candle burns out."

"Don't worry, _aibou_," Yami assured his worried partner. "It's not like the field. No Dark Games."

"I don't like needless fighting," Yuugi moaned.

"It's training, we'll be fine," Yami gently replied, hands straying to his holsters as he pulled out a card. Reaching _into_ the card, he pulled out a long green staff with a knob on the end. "Thank you, Ma- Djer."

"Ready..." Tsunade executed the sign. "Begin!"

Both sides stood warily, cautious of the opposition's special abilities.

_Bakura, your observations_? Yami sent through the mind link all _hikari_s and _yami_s shared.

_Headless Knight against the one with two knives, Ghost against the lady in red, White Hat takes on the other lady. _Bakura rattled off._ I take on the one in green spandex, you take Kakashi. You're better at battle assessment than me, and I want to know what our supposed bodyguard is capable of._

_Curious_, Yami pointed out mentally. _Why do you have White Hat take on the other female Jounin?_ _Is it due to her stance?_

_The snake-style, yeah. Only White Hat can deal with that flexibility._

_I see. _There was a pause as both _yami_s felt an intruding presence_._ _Someone tries to intrude in our minds_.

_Trap them in the Labyrinth Walls, deal with them after this._

_And throw in Wall Shadow for good emphasis._

_...Pharaoh, you are sadistic._

_I tend to pick up something after exposure to you. _

"Monsters, your targets!" Bakura bellowed once the foreign presence was safely stuck screaming in the midst of the Magical Labyrinth. "Let's go!"

White Magical Hat's speed and flexibility, plus thief's instinct, allowed it to evade the various snakes and sneak attacks from the equally flexible Jounin. Headless Knight stood well against the chakra knives, given that it was essentially a haunted suit of armour. Ghost of Nightmare pretty much ignored any Genjutsu cast on it, as nightmares were aplenty in the Shadow Realm for it to be inured, forcing Kurenai to move to hand-to-hand combat and ninjutsu.

Yami winced as the green-spandexed ninja shattered the chain of the Blast with Chain. "Ow," he stated in sympathy.

"Your opponent is me," Kakashi said as he threw the kunai. Yami barely dodged, lifting the staff to block the next attack.

"Quite fast," Yami replied as Kakashi jumped back. He aimed. "Dark Magic!"

Kakashi narrowly dodged the oncoming shadow ball before it impacted on him, forming hand seals as he dodged. "_Katon: Hosenka no Jutsu!_"

The Copy Ninja had the feeling that something was very wrong as the barrage of fireballs flew towards Yami, and Yami just grinned. His dread increased as Yami pulled out a card.

"_Holy Barrier: Mirror Force_!"

The barrage impacted off a invisible barrier and headed back...straight for him. Kakashi ran fast, dodging all but the last few which singed his clothing...right in front of the staff's glowing knob.

"You concede?" Yami tapped the staff in emphasis. Kakashi nodded, defeated.

White Magical Hat and Anko essentially KO'd each other, Headless Knight was viciously disassembled by chakra knives after a long while, and Kurenai dispelled the Ghost of Nightmare, still shaking. The Jounin now looked as their last remaining fighter faced off against Bakura, holding a deep purple sword.

"You fast little- Eat this!" Bakura pulled out the dreaded playing card. "_Energy Drain!_"

As Gai slowed down, Bakura could knock him out with the butt of the sword.

"Took you long enough," Yami remarked, just as the candle burned out. "How was he?"

"He'd make great Shadow Ream food," Bakura grumbled. "Too damn energetic, Ra damn it..."

"Mine was holding back on me," Yami confessed. "But if he had used a more direct form of attack, I would have had to resort to close combat instead of Mirror Force."

Kakashi was stunned. "How did you-?"

"You believe that I too was holding out on you, because I never summoned anything," Yami replied. "Likewise, likely from previous data, you have likely formed the conclusion that our power lies mostly either in our cards or in our summons. I will now tell you something; mere accumulation of observational data is not proof." Yami smirked. "Oh, and those monsters you fought. They were some of the weakest."

Asuma, Kurenai, and a conscious but immovable Anko gulped, as did Tsunade.

"Does any of the shinobi here know how to read minds?" Yami asked the Hokage. "Although I know that the shinobi believe in sneak attacks, I react very horribly to that."

"Shikaku," Tsunade turned to the Jounin commander.

"Hokage Sama, Inoichi fell unconscious after trying to read their minds," Shikaku reported, indicating the passed-out ninja laid on the ground.

Visibly annoyed, Yami pulled out another card, aimed it at the body, and blew. Yamanaka Inoichi immediately snapped into consciousness, eyes wide.

"Try it again," Yami warned. "And you will be very sorry."

Inoichi mutely nodded.

* * *

><p>"Assessment," Tsunade started once the Jounin were assembled.<p>

"Yuugioh's real alias is Yami no Yuugi," Kakashi reported. "He is skilled with the staff, as I can tell with his handling today, but to what extent I cannot answer."

"Bakura Yami is highly skilled with knives," Gai volunteered, indicating several strategically placed cuts on his person. "And whatever he did to me, I never want to meet it outside of the training ground. It...completely drained me. I felt most unyouthful and... lacking in energy."

Shock reverberated around the room at that.

"I noticed that Bakura Yami and Yami no Yuugi seemed to be able to communicate by some unforeseen method," Nara Shikaku slowly stated. "I immediately asked Inoichi to investigate through the Yamanaka family jutsu. However, Inoichi was rendered unconscious and unable to return to his body throughout the whole fight. They seemed to be able to communicate mentally, nevertheless, and from how the fight turned out, both have a solid grasp of tactics and planning that may be comparable to my own."

"I did not reach their minds before I was pulled into a labyrinth," Inoichi relayed. "I could not walk on the walls or reach the ceiling, nor could I jump over the labyrinth walls. Shadows lashed out from the walls at me, and I was stuck running through that … place until I was set free. It is too risky to read their minds, Hokage Sama."

"The shadows Yami no Yuugi called before my son is nothing like the Nara family's techniques," Shikaku gravely relayed. "Our shadow-jutsu are just that; shadows and only our own at that. Yami no Yuugi seemed to command all shadows. I do not know the extent of his reach, or his power."

Tsunade laced her fingers together, deep in thought. "Did anyone find out what happens when one attacks Mutou Yuugi and Bakura Ryou?" she asked.

One Jounin Shiranui Genma nodded. "_Hai_. Under the guise of an accident, I threw a senbon in their direction."

"And?" Tsunade prompted.

Genma lifted his left hand and took the glove off. The skin under was bruised and blackened, as if crushed from all around. "My bones weren't broken," he assured the Hokage.

"When did that-?" Several Jounin were shocked.

"My shadow creeped up and did this to me, after deflecting the senbon," Genma answered, donning the glove.

"Get medical assistance after this," Tsunade ordered. "Although really, a senbon at innocent bystanders, Genma?"

"My apologies, Hokage Sama," Genma answered. "But anything bigger and it would've been an act of war. A senbon is relatively harmless, and could be counted as an accident. Moreover, it was a highly effective threat assessment."

Tsunade sighed. "I'll let you off for once, since you're right. Very well then, tomorrow I want Inuzuka Tsume and Aburame Shibi to see if ninja animals are affected."

Kakashi raised a hand. "With all due respect, Hokage Sama, but if Jounin were to become involved in this, Yami no Yuugi and Bakura Yami might suspect something. I have never known Inoichi to lack descriptions of a mind, and the absence of such would indicate that whatever he saw was indeed fearsome. If they could do this to someone under Ibiki..."

"Fair point," Kurenai nodded. "But if Genin were to _coincidentally_ pass by..."

Tsunade _hmph_ed. "Fair point. How are Kiba and Shino?"

"They have been released from the hospital and have just begun to get back to a normal training schedule," Kurenai reported.

Tsunade nodded. "I see. Kakashi, would it be possible to arrange a coincidence?"

"With those two? Probably," Kakashi admitted. "Whether they would be believed is another story, though. The four are with my students now, probably at Ichiraku."

"Very well. Tomorrow Kiba and Shino will reconnaissance and find out." Tsunade ordered. "What time are you meeting them tomorrow, Kakashi? Oh, and, Kakashi, I want you to give a good impression. If you are more than five minutes late, I will hit you through a brick wall."

"Ten forty-five, and yes, Hokage Sama." Kakashi saluted.

"Dismissed." The ninja immediately disappeared.

"Did you hear that?' Tsunade spoke aloud to the 'empty' office.

"Yes," Jiraiya of the Sannin materialised before the desk, sighing heavily. "I've never seen Gamabunta that pale before. Mount Myoboku is in a state of high alert until they leave."

"What did the Sage Toad say?" Tsunade asked.

"He would much like to meet the two beings who pre-date him, no idea who he's talking about," Jiraiya answered. "The Two Great Sage Toads are bickering, they think he's senile. They believe that they are responsible for the fate of Grandmaster Sasuke of long ago and are wary."

"That was a legend, right?" Tsunade frowned, wrinkles marring her beautiful face. "Nobody knows what happened to the legendary master."

"They say that he himself became shadow, became one with the darkness, and never left," Jiraiya answered. "I will see them for myself and judge it. So, from the Jounin, how dangerous are they?"

"They commanded the _Ichibi no Shukaku_ today," Tsunade answered, a note of fear barely heard. "Jiraiya, whatever happens, we must get them on our side."

"I know," the Toad Sage answered. "Ojiji Sama told me as well."

"The thousand-year-old toad is correct," Tsunade pulled out another hidden bottle of sake and a _sakazuki_-cup. "They don't...feel human at all. Mutou Yuugi and Bakura Ryou, their eyes are so innocent, and the other two … so old. Like they've seen millennia and nothing could faze them. And when they look at their twins, it's like their whole world is in that one person, and anyone who hurts them had better pray to die." Tsunade shuddered. "It's terrifying, Jiraiya. If they go to the other side-"

"They won't," Jiraiya reassured his Hokage. "Naruto is the type of person to attract friends. Mutou Yuugi and Bakura Ryou look like the type to make friends and are absolutely loyal to their comrades. And the other two would most likely follow them to the end. Have faith in Naruto, Tsunade. You can safely bet by it."


	9. Chapter 9

Yami and Bakura looked at Sai, then at each other, and then at the bickering other two bodyguards, then at their partners, and then at Sai again.

"Is there anything I can help you with?" Sai politely asked.

"You can start by telling us who sent you to us," Bakura growled.

"Why, the Hokage's office did," Sai smiled in reply.

Bakura's eyes narrowed. Black chains leapt out of thin air and bound Sai just as Yuugi and Ryou went to break up the fight Sasuke and Naruto were starting on again. "I don't believe you," the thief King replied.

Sai shrugged, a difficult feat considering the chains. "Suit yourself."

The Pharaoh and the Thief King shared a look.

"Open your mouth," Yami suddenly said, kneeling.

The shinobi suddenly turned nervous. "Why?"

"If you cannot talk, then it makes sense to pursue other avenues," Yami cryptically replied, pulling out another card. "Now open it." His expression conveyed that it would be in Sai's best interests to do so.

Contrary to popular opinion, even shinobi had a sense of self-preservation.

"Interesting," Yami remarked at seeing the mark on the tongue. "Likely a seal to stop you from saying anything in the event of torture. No wonder, you literally cannot talk. Since I doubt the Hokage would place such a thing on a twelve-year-old, from this we can draw a few conclusions. And none of them are pretty."

"Courses of action?" Bakura remarked as he watched the fight Yuugi and Ryou had ended up refereeing.

"We approach it another way," Yami shrugged. "Kakashi." he stated as the Jounin appeared beside him.

"When did Danzo turn his hand to children?" Kakashi said, eye on the mark on Sai's tongue. He was leaking killing intent, a fact which did not go missed by the two _yami_s.

"He does nothing anyway. The agent is rarely ever the one to blame." Yami remarked, standing up. "The Hokage would hardly allow a rogue on this if he was untrustworthy. Bakura, you can withdraw the chains."

Bakura growled as the chains disappeared. Sai stood up, rubbing his arms where the chains had chafed at skin.

"Why would you trust me?" Sai asked as the two walked to their lights.

Yami raised an eyebrow. "You are bound by circumstances you can hardly control. Why would we not? It is not your fault, after all."

"Such nonchalance would get you killed," Kakashi told them as they walked out of earshot.

"We intend to inform the Hokage soon," Yami shrugged. "There is hardly anything else to be done."

Kakashi gave no reply.

"Yes, there is a way to increase your speed," Yami answered a random question thrown by Naruto.

A purple portal of swirling shadows appeared, tall as a man and circular, foreboding and terrifying even in the late afternoon.

"A breakneck run through the Shadow Realm."

The two _yami_s looked too pleased for anyone's health...

* * *

><p>For the first in a long, long time, Sasuke and Sai were united in a common cause (And pigs explored their new aviation abilities across Konoha that day).<p>

"Never," Sasuke threw a punch which sent their team-mate flying through the air. "Again."

"Agreed," Sai executed a perfect knee kick in mid-air which sent said Jinchuuriki flying towards the ground.

Hey, you'd be pissed too if your team-mate got you running at breakneck speed through a realm of monsters.

"Four kilometres in...three minutes?" Yami raised a stopwatch. "Incredible timing."

"You'd be moving at superhuman speed there too," Sasuke pointed out.

"Have you ever tried fighting them?" Yami asked curiously.

The three Genin, even the battered Jinchuuriki, shuddered in unison. "After Kakashi Sensei?"

"There are lower-level monsters," Bakura dryly replied, sitting on a tree branch not far off. "And it's not like we sent any heavy hitters into battle with the Jounin, anyway."

"I think I know the perfect bonding activity," the three shinobi shared feelings of foreboding as the portal which would come to haunt their training nightmares appeared again.

* * *

><p>"Shit," Inuzuka Kiba swore as Akamaru shivered, both hidden in the surrounding under-bush to spy on the eight people. "Oi, Shino, how are your bugs?"<p>

"My _kikai _ refuses to approach Yami no Yuugi and Bakura Yami," Aburame Shino reported. "However, they seem perfectly adequate with staying with Mutou Yuugi and Bakura Ryou. They are … agitated by the chakra output of the four, but otherwise unharmed."

"Better than my end. Akamaru's terrified," Kiba pointed to his nin-ken. "Now all we need to do is to run a doujutsu test. Too bad Hinata's not here."

"No need," a quiet voice sounded behind them. The two spooked Genin turned to see Kakashi with the hitai-ate up to reveal the three swirling tomoe of the signature Sharingan left eye.

"Aren't you-?" Kiba exclaimed.

"Genjutsu plus _kage bunshin_." Kakashi shortly explained. "I can see nothing. In Yuugi and Ryou, the chakra flow is so bright I was almost blinded, and in Yami and Bakura, so dark that they might as well be dead."

"How odd," Shino remarked, turning back to the seven -not counting the clone- people at the training ground. "Even the _bijuu_ have never achieved such a feat before … oh."

The two other shinobi's eyes widened as Kakashi covered his left eye with his hitai-ate and Kiba swore: "What is that!"

"It seems like we have four visitors," they heard Yami's baritone remark almost casually. "You three, Swift Black Ninja. Apprehend and capture."

The three Genin blinked. "Where-?"

"There are three over there," Yami pointed to the bushes surrounding the hidden shinobi. Kiba and Shino quickly scarpered as Kakashi threw down a smoke bomb and switched places with his clone, dismissing it with a single seal. He almost sighed in relief were it not a) unbecoming of an ANBU member to do so and b) Yami and Bakura were giving him odd looks, Bakura's almost a glare.

The two slowly blinked before turning to the south, where a ninja dressed completely in special forces black with matching red scarf and black half-face mask was dragging a khaki-dressed ninja over. Throwing the khaki ninja foaming at the mouth at Yami and Bakura's feet, the ninja with no hitai-ate in sight bowed and vanished into black smoke.

"He never hangs around to chat," Yami shook his head before looking at the shinobi. "Well, well, it looks like the other hidden village has agents here as well, Bakura."

Bakura smirked in a way that would have been classed as highly dangerous as he bent down to look in the enemy agent's eyes. "Hi," he growled to a rapidly awakening ninja. Black chains leapt out of nowhere and bound the shinobi tighter than a mummy.

"Who sent you?" Yami growled, eyes a brilliant crimson in their rage.

The enemy ninja's eyes widened as choking sounds sounded from under before the eyes went dull.

"Poison tooth? No chance," Bakura snorted, kneeling down and fiddling with a card. "_Poison of the Old Man_." A vial appeared in his hand, the contents of which he upended into the shinobi's mouth.

The shinobi sputtered in shock as he came back to the human world, before Bakura had him on a firm grip to the throat. "Right, start talking." Bakura snarled. "No, before you try that again, you've used your poison tooth already, and even death itself will not save you from me if you try to run. So talk, and I might just make your death painless."

"For Orochimaru Sama, I will-" Bakura's grip tightened audibly. The shinobi choked on his next words.

"Trespassers will be killed and eaten," Bakura glared at a rapidly paling shinobi. "Whatever these shinobi put you through, they're going to be tamer than what I will subject you to. So talk, or torture?"

"You can't-"

"Shadow Realm, three minute tour." Shadows swirled around Bakura and the enemy shinobi before the two vanished. Yami and Yuugi looked unperturbed, Team Kakashi less so.

"Where did they...?" Kakashi voiced out.

"Your students know," Yami replied, yawning lightly into his hand. "Let us go to the Hokage Tower; Bakura is sure to be there when he finishes the tour."

"How _is_ the Shadow Realm?" Kakashi asked the three of them. He knew that wherever this place was, it was damn scary to be able to scare even Sasuke and Sai to show shivers.

* * *

><p>True to his word, Bakura lugged an incoherent shinobi babbling about Orochimaru's secret plans to the best of his knowledge, starting with how a team of shinobi was sent into Fire Country to search for the ones who levelled Inari Castle and exact the revenge of the Hidden Village of Sound, as well as kidnap the last Uchiha. Tsunade would have been impressed with such efficiency if it weren't for the fact that it was now confirmed that at least two of the four were responsible for the destruction of what was said to have been the strongest citadel built by Orochimaru, on top of other matters.<p>

"The Konoha Council has raised some questions regarding why a supposed defector is starting on a mission out of the village," Tsunade started once the enemy shinobi had finished babbling to Bakura's content and allowed himself to be taken into ANBU custody, with the condition to be far, far away from Bakura. "I have diverted their questions with an excuse about an unauthorised mission to spy on Orochimaru for now, but it will not stand up to close scrutiny. In this mission, Sasuke, you'll have to perform extremely well and don't slip up. I want your pretty neck intact long enough to produce a promising Chuunin at minimum."

Sasuke nodded, deciding not to answer in any way.

"Sai," the Lady Hokage started. "I know of your origins, and frankly, I don't trust you, but Danzo gave me no choice. Therefore, if you try anything on this mission, I will come down on you hard."

"Very well, Hokage Sama," Sai replied.

"I do not believe that he will betray us," Yami murmured, holding Yuugi close. "After all, we hold something that he truly wishes for."

"You set out tomorrow," Tsunade terminated the conversation, not caring to play riddle games.

* * *

><p>"Civilian speeds suck," Naruto plainly complained as the team set out. "Why, why, why?"<p>

Kakashi just kept a cool mask on. "We have four civilians on this trip, Naruto."

"I know, but I can't imagine, why, why, _why_?"

Naruto continued until the combined glares of the two _yami_s silenced him. It was the particular glare that read: I Am _This_ Close To Sending You To The Shadow Realm, which Sasuke was secretly hoping to emulate.

Sasuke rubbed his head at a patch where Bakura had flicked an enhanced finger-flick that sent him flying across the training ground the last night before their journey. It _hurt,_ but the pain was much unlike the curse seal, this one could be dulled if he just denied it.

So far, none of the shinobi had fought Yuugi or Ryou yet, mostly because they had learnt that Yuugi and Ryou's skills lay mostly in defence and healing, not offence. This had meant that they were effectively teaming up against the other two, who were more than a handful with a near inexhaustible supply of monsters at their beck and call. This was also because any challenge to Yuugi and Ryou was just asking for Yami and Bakura to pull something nasty out of their pockets. The last time the only brave soul (Kakashi) had tried it, the three Genin had almost enjoyed seeing Kakashi running for his life in the Dragon Canyon, as Yami described it, from huge dragons like the reptiles of legend that breathed fire. The two Genin had spotted Sai scribbling frantically to jot down the dragons' looks, presumably for his art ninjutsu, before the dragons tried to incinerate them. Good times...

But the headache was still a killer...

Bakura smirked, and for once Sasuke thought that the white-haired one was actually smiling in his direction. For some reason, his skin crawled and tried to hide.


	10. Chapter 10

It took them three days to reach the Hii-Taki border and cross the border. Kakashi led them through more forest and valleys approaching mountainous areas, patiently searching for the hidden village.

"If any Waterfall shinobi appear, we run," Kakashi ordered.

"If we must," Yami replied, eyes narrowing to the left.

Suddenly, Sai threw a kunai to his right, where two shadowy figures narrowly dodged by jumping up onto a tree branch, revealing themselves to the Konoha shinobi. One was a black-haired male, eyes with a black pin-wheel swirling in each red pupil. The other was tall, blue-skinned with spiky blue hair, grinning to reveal a full set of shark's teeth and hefting a huge sword covered in bandages. Both wore robes with a red cloud pattern against a black background, and their hitai-ate had a deep horizontal scratch across the centre.

Almost on instinct, Sasuke's hand flew to his own new hitai-ate, the one he had scratched at the Valley of the End consigned to a Chidori.

"Company," Yami stated, just as another pair made themselves known, this time one with a mask and demonic green eyes, and another with grey hair and a manic grin.

"The Zombie Combo, huh?" the blue man laughed.

"Hoshigaki Kisame, Hidan, Kakazu," Bakura counted. "And… Uchiha Itachi."

Said brunette looked down at the battle-ready shinobi, eyes narrowing. "Foolish Otouto."

"You," Sasuke flatly replied.

"How opportunistic," the one addressed as Kakazu barked in laughter. "The Kyuubi Jinchuuriki, with the Copy Ninja and the other Uchiha. A pretty bounty here."

"What are we, chopped liver?" Bakura snarled, pulling out another sharpened kunai.

"Civilians," Hidan spat. "Not worth our time. We should just kill them now."

Kisame was looking at his sword, hardly saying a word. Under the bandages around the weapon, something shivered, as if in fear.

"I presume that these are the Akatsuki the Hokage was talking about," Yami stated matter-of-fact. "Very well, then. Bakura, you choose."

"The one with grey hair," Bakura leered. "You protect our lights."

"Suit yourself," Yami shrugged, pulling out a five-card hand from the deck holster. "Go."

* * *

><p>Kakazu leered at Yami as Kakashi and the three Genin fought Itachi and Kisame some distance away. Yuugi and Ryou had left to provide support to the shinobi team against Yami's better judgement, while Bakura had kicked Hidan some distance off.<p>

"Well, it's time to kill you," Kakazu sneered as he pulled out a kunai. "I won't even have to use any elemental jutsu for this, so you'll have a relatively boring death."

The Black Magician's green staff materialised within Yami's hand, which he snatched out in mid-air. "Dark Magic!"

Kakazu swore as the staff spat out black spheres of energy that he was hard pressed to keep dodging, even on familiar territory. Black threads began to form from his body as he threw off his Akatsuki cloak. "Well, it looks like you've merited yourself a show."

"I'm flattered," Yami coldly replied, lining up his next shot. "Dark Magic Attack!" The sphere impacted onto the nuke-nin's arm and Kakazu swore as said appendage hung only by a single black thread. "What the hell did you do to my Kinjutsu, you bastard?" Kakazu swore as black threads ineffectually tried to sew it back, but to no effect.

"Curious," Yami cocked his head. "It seems like your technique is similar to an Equip Spell card. No matter. Dark Magic!"

"You- Lightning Mask!" Kakazu was barely able to blast the speeding black sphere with lightning chakra.

"Charmers, come forth!" Yami ordered, as five beings sprang into existence in a puff of shadow. The Spellcasters were child-like, each holding onto staffs as long as their height, and each with a familiar monster hanging about them, all ten faces -eleven including the _yami'_s- set in determination against the nuke-nin. "Flip!"

"Wha-" Kakazu's elemental masks, each containing a heart of a different elemental affinity, began to separate unwillingly from his body, tearing his back muscles slowly and painfully in the process as the nuke-nin screamed in pain. "What is this? What jutsu is this! You...you..."

"Meet my friends, the Charmers," Yami began, smirking nastily. "Here is Hiita, the Fire Charmer." The girl dressed in red robes grinned as Kakazu had his red mask ripped out from his back.

"Hiita can control one fire monster as long as she stays," Yami continued, ignoring the ripping sounds which oddly sounded like splintering threads. "Now, Lyna here can do the same thing, except with Light monsters, but I think Lightning counts as well, right?"

A girl in yellow robes gave a thumbs up as a mask with lightning crackling was ripped out.

"Aussa," a bespectacled boy in brown robes grinned as said mask tore itself out, "focuses on Earth, and Wynn," A girl in green robes gave a shy smile, "Controls Wind monsters. In short, all your other hearts are now under my control, Kakazu of the Elements."

"You-" Kakazu tried to stand from where he had collapsed on the ground. "Bastard, I'll- What did you do?"

Behind the Akatsuki member appeared another boy, dressed in dark brown-black robes and holding another staff. Unlike the rest of the short mages, this one was barely smiling, his face a mask of boredom.

"The disadvantage of being a deserter," Yami coolly interrupted, "is that all your skills and crimes are placed in the Bingo Book. You have torn out the hearts of your village's elders and used them for your own deeds to hunt other bounties for your own gain. There is absolutely no doubt in your case. For such a dark heart as yours, Dharc the Dark Charmer can easily take control of it."

"And, for threatening mine," Yami continued as an eye began to glow on his forehead, "You will pay."

He raised a finger, and pointed it in judgement at the weakened shinobi.

"**Penalty Game!**"

The scream of the nuke-nin was an unholy thing to hear as it echoed his pain throughout.

* * *

><p>Hidan laughed as the white-haired one slumped forward, stabbed through the sternum by Hidan's scythe. "You're a joke! Weak!"<p>

Bakura finally looked into his face, effectively killing Hidan's next words as he looked into a face that was peppered with the promise of death with all the human seasonings of hate and vengeance, and the nuke-nin somehow got the premonition that his death was imminent as his confidence suddenly died as purple mist began to swirl around them.

Bakura's eyes were wide and manic as he pulled out his longest knife. "Welcome to my domain. Let's play a game..." the Thief King, Stealer of Souls drawled. "If you win this game, I'll let you kill me and leave this realm. If not, I'll place a penalty game on you. Do you accept?"

"What game?" Hidan muttered, now wary of the purple mist the hung ominously about. Something told him that this was no poison, but something far, far worse.

"It's called 'Mimic'," Here Bakura's smile widened. "The rules are this; we take a knife, and we take turns to stab a part of ourselves. The opponent must copy where the player stabs exactly. The loser is the one who cannot copy exactly where the other stabs. The winner is the one who can unflinchingly stab anywhere on their body where the loser cannot follow up. Do you-"

"Hah!" Hidan shouted, pulling out a long kunai from his sleeve. "I accept! I'll win for sure! I choose the sternum!"

So saying,the nuke-nin sunk the long blade into his heart. Bakura copied exactly, his face never changing from his manic expression as both pulled out their knives from their arms. It was only a while later that Hidan's own manic smile fell to be replaced with panic.

"Oh, yes," Bakura whispered just as Hidan caught on to the object of Bakura's attention; his own heart was rapidly beating, pumping his blood out of his body, which was not healing as it should. "In my realm, your so-called immortality is revoked. Furthermore, anyone who dies here is immediately consigned to eternity with the monsters in the darkness. My servants, look at our new toy..."

From the purple mists erupted the fiends and zombies and the beings under the command of the Thief King. Hidan's screams echoing as the monsters of the shadows dragged their newest prisoner into the shadows in which they dwelt, where an eternity of pain awaited the defeated nuke-nin.

Bakura sighed as his wound closed, leaving slightly tanned skin surrounded by bloodstained cloth. "Damn, and I liked this one too." He then looked at the soulless body of Hidan slumped on the ground, whose face was contorted in an expression of utter agony, before grinning sadistically. "Ah, well."

* * *

><p>"Samehada doesn't slice, it shaves!" Kisame declared as he swung the huge sword composed mostly of teeth at Kakashi.<p>

"_Doton: Doryuuheki!_" the mud wall barely saved his life as he jumped back just when Samehada hit the spot where he was two seconds before. Nearby, Ryou was patching up an exhausted Sai while Sasuke and Naruto teamed up against Itachi.

"Now, Copy Ninja Kakashi, if you don't mind, we should part ways here," Kisame started. "We're rushing for time, after all-"

A sigil-laced circle of light surrounded Kisame at the waist and effectively trapped him there. "What the-?"

"_Spellbinding Circle_," Yuugi held up said card, standing just a few feet away from him. "You really shouldn't stand still in a battle. Ryou, how is he?"

"Fine," Sai replied before the white-haired hikari could, standing up. "Now, I have to assist my team-mates."

"You bastard! What the hell is this? I-" Kisame was speechless as Yuugi turned to him.

"It is a prison," Yuugi replied. "I can sense you trying to escape, focusing whatever power you have to break it. Your efforts are apparent from the muscle strain, the grip on your sword, and your sweat. At this stage, one could safely slit your throat and you would not be able to retaliate. Please relax. You are incapacitated, but it would be a stain on our honour to do anything to you."

"The weak are meat, the strong eat. I don't want to be eaten." Kisame shot back. "Move off, squirt."

"I'm in my twenties," Yuugi confessed, a feat that stopped even the Kiri nuke-nin temporarily.

"Seriously?" all but an unsurprised Ryou yelled.

"You don't look it," Kisame concluded after scrutinising him. "You look like a kid."

"The price of looking like a walking advertisement for clean living," Yuugi sighed. "Besides, I don't like shark fin. So how are we supposed to eat you?"

Kakashi had already left, confident that Yuugi could hold Kisame there and Sai was a sufficient guard. It also helped that in the distance, Yami and Bakura were dragging unconscious shinobi over.

"Whatever. I cannot be defeated, and I'd rather die than tell you more, so f- leave." Kisame lamely changed his word choice at the last minute. This author believes that somewhere deep down inside, Hoshigaki Kisame was reluctant to pollute what he still believes is a child's mind with swear words.

"I know," Yuugi's reply caused the Kiri nuke-nin to double-take. "I have already seen what makes you what you are, Hoshigaki Kisame San. You walk your own path, but you follow a certain person. Someone with eyes the colour of blood. By following his descendant, you hope to be able to experience the new world this man would create."

Kisame blinked. "I'm not going to ask how did you know that, but you better shut up now. A shark has no patience, you know."

"Actually, sharks have to constantly swim in order to gain water to pass through their gills in order to breathe," Sai pointed out. "It's not really a matter of patience than one of survival."

"So, if I can't break this seal by physical force … then I'll just break it by chakra!" Kisame gritted sharp mostly-canine teeth as waves of blue chakra poured off him and cracks bean appearing in the circle.

"Oh?" Yuugi sounded mostly curious than panicking. "I wonder ..."

A force like a hundred anvils descended on the Kiri nuke-nin, who choked at the sheer force than seemed to suffocate his lungs and send his nerves into overdrive and scream _danger, danger_. Before him, he could see Sai double over slightly, as if suffering from some spillover.

"Oops, looks like I overdid it," Yuugi sheepishly told the Konoha Genin. "But at least he's not struggling now."

Kisame had frozen all over, like prey knowing that they had been spotted by predator and freezing in the hopes to escape the predator. In his hand, Samehada had begun whistling like a kettle on the boil, much to Yuugi's amusement. "Interesting. It's not everyday you see that."

"Aibou, I'm done here," Yami had appeared, dragging Kakazu's body behind him. Sai choked.

Whether the nuke-nin was unconscious or dead, Kisame couldn't tell, but was impressed nevertheless. "What did you do to him?"

Yami turned towards him, and Kisame was forcefully reminded of red eyes capable of controlling the demons as he peered into crimson depths. "Think about it. Do you really want to know?"

Self-preservation reared its head and held his tongue. He shook his head.

"Excellent. Bakura, what took you?"

The other white-haired had dragged an unconscious Hidan over, dumping the shinobi at his feet. "We played a game."

"Do I want to know why there's so much blood?" Yami sounded halfway between amused and disgusted. Yuugi gagged.

"He'll live." Bakura dismissively replied. "He says he's immortal. D'you know that his partner is supposed to be immortal as well?"

Looking at Hidan, Kisame could only be impressed. Not only had Bakura chopped off his appendages, but he could also see the remaining marks of a disembowelment and evisceration. The most impressive thing was the Hidan's body was still breathing, from what he could see of the lung movement from his vantage point, and that the body was still healing. "You two are scary," he confessed.

"If you cannot hurt them physically, it makes sense to turn to other avenues," Yami replied archly. "This one should be babbling as we speak." he motioned to Kakazu.

Kisame peered at the unconscious/dead nuke-nin. "He's not reacting."

"Certainly not here," Yami replied. "Since your organisation is looking for the _bijuu,_ I left him with one. He should enjoy the experience."

Yuugi stared at his partner. "Are you sure that those tendencies aren't acting up?"

Yami reached for his partner's shoulder. "Positive. I considered throwing him in the Abyss, but I refrained. It's not like he didn't deserve it."

Yuugi sighed in exasperation, the two of them ignoring Kisame, who was trying to break out of the circle again, this time in a bid to run from a positively evil-looking Bakura from which he could feel malicious intent rolling off from.

The two _hikari-yami _pairs were distracted when Kakashi flew across to impact on the ground before them. "Sensei," Sai rushed to help the Jounin up.

"Oh," Yami stated with some interest as a wave of chakra and killer intent swept across the forest. "It should be time now."


	11. Chapter 11

"Naruto, dammit!" Sasuke pulled the blonde Jinchuuriki out of the flames' way, never recoiling as the red chakra burnt his skin. "Dammit, wake up! Naruto!"

"Shove off, Sasuke- _teme!_" This Naruto was feral, dangerous and borderline insane. "Hate, rip, tear, kill ..."

"Wake up!" Sasuke punched his friend in the face. "The Naruto I know doesn't hate like that! Stop putting on the hatred act! Wake up!"

"Sasuke, piss off!" Naruto growled, batting the raven-haired shinobi off, sending his flying towards Itachi. The older Uchiha grabbed him by the shoulders only to drop Sasuke like a rag doll after dislocating both arms. "Foolish Otouto, don't get in the way of adults," Itachi monotonously chided as he walked towards a ferociously growling Naruto pouring red chakra out from all over his body.

"Naruto, wake up! You can't fight like this! You can't fight-" _Like you're full of hatred, _Sasuke wanted to finish, but found it highly hypocritical. _Our situations have reversed, _Sasuke realised, not missing the irony. _I'm the one persuading him now._

_Come to think of it, it feels all wrong. _

"You cannot fight me effectively like this, much less hope to defeat me," Itachi stated matter-of-fact as he performed a series of kata that sent the berserker Naruto flying straight into a Sasuke who had completely neglected to move at all.

As Naruto plowed straight into the prone raven-haired shinobi, Sasuke wished: _Please, wake up..._

_If you say so, Omote, _a voice laughed. _I need to confront Itachi Nii about something now. Sleep..._

* * *

><p><em>Die now, die, die...<em>

"Do you really want him to die?" a quiet voice echoed beside Naruto's ear. The blonde's shinobi's eyes snapped wide open and he sat up quickly. Chakra was still pouring off him, he noticed, and it was burning into his friend's skin.

"I'll be fine," Sasuke stated as Naruto, complete with elongated nails and claws, jumped up and was about to start raining down the questions. "But I must ask you again; is that the real you who wishes for Itachi Nii to die, or your hatred?"

"It's..." Naruto found himself unable to answer as he slowly comprehended. "... I don't know, really," he confessed.

"You have helped me to shoulder my hatred once," the raven-haired shinobi stood up, and for the first time, Naruto looked into red eyes that were oddly wide and without Sharingan, his own blue-red eyes widening in shock. "It is my turn to return the favour, Uzumaki San."

"Where's Sasuke?" the maddened Naruto demanded. "Why…why is there-?"

"A stranger looking out of his eyes?" the not-Sasuke sounded almost amused, turning blank red eyes on to him. "Sasuke is asleep for now within his mind. I am the shadow of his mind. You can also call me–"

A blur of motion, and the not-Sasuke had shoved Naruto to the side, blocking Itachi from Naruto's unprotected back.

"... _the other Sasuke._"

* * *

><p>Ten seconds, and already Naruto decided that he hated this part of Sasuke on general principle. Given how the other Sasuke had only been civil in conversation to him, this is very odd.<p>

"Good day, Itachi Nii," the other Sasuke greeted the nuke-nin as their kunais clashed again. "It is nice weather, isn't it?"

To his credit, Itachi took only a moment to answer. "Who are you?"

"I am Uchiha Sasuke, Itachi Nii," the other Sasuke replied, moving to take advantage of an opening. Itachi jumped back. "Didn't you just call me your foolish brother just now?"

"You are not Sasuke," Itachi growled. "Your eyes are not Sasuke's eyes. Where is my brother?"

"Ooo, credit to you," the other Sasuke almost sang out as he dodged a particularly vicious kick, jumping back. "I suppose it's just courteous to answer. I am another part of Uchiha Sasuke, created on a beautiful moonlit night almost five years ago. Or was it six? The passage of time can never be determined well in a mind."

"Five years ago … the massacre?" Itachi asked.

"When _omote_ activated his Sharingan for the first time, and you shattered his mind, I was created," the other Sasuke replied contemplatively, running his left hand over his right hand holding a kunai in a manner that made Naruto recall Orochimaru and shudder. "I suppose I should thank you for creating me, and supplying me with a fresh supply of hatred such that I can gain strength. For almost five years, your actions have allowed me to gain almost enough power to influence _omote's_ conscious actions and perceive his subconscious."

"You are his hatred," Itachi realised.

"So nice of you to point that out," the other Sasuke replied sarcastically. "For five years already I have gained strength. Of course, the Sharingan is beyond my will to activate, but no matter." He began playing with the kunai. "You know, during those five years in the subconscious, this me has been wondering about the truth behind the massacre."

Itachi had stiffened abruptly, as had Naruto in surprise. Nearby, the shinobi and the four blinked.

"Point one: if you were truly mad, why are we still alive?" the other Sasuke lifted one finger. "Our very existence debunks that hypothesis. Even if we were truly unworthy of being killed, there are mountains around Konoha. You could have, oh, say dropped us off a cliff, and it is unlikely a seven-year-old would have survived. An exemplary shinobi like you would have known to kill any and all members of the family to save yourself the future trouble. That would mean that somehow, we was to remain alive. Even if you did stay your hand the first time, any good shinobi would have killed us the second time we met to save yourself future trouble. So, unless you have degenerated as a shinobi entirely in five years, you have deliberately been keeping us alive."

"Point two," Up went another finger. "We must trace this to Fugaku-_chichi_ and his sudden interest in us. He has always favoured you; that he now turned to us is either due to empty-nest syndrome or that we have replaced you in his affections. Knowing Fugaku-_chichi_, the former is highly unlikely, the latter only moderately so. Therefore, somehow you have done something to lower yourself in his eyes. It cannot be in your work –we have access to your mission files, the Sandaime allowed us at least that– so, it must be within the family.

"Point three, Uchiha Shisui." At Itachi's surprised expression, the other Sasuke half-smiled before his expression returned to normal, holding up three fingers. "The Konoha Military Police really kept very detailed files that _omote_ kept poring over after the massacre. Interestingly, his body was stolen directly after the autopsy, the why or wherefore we don't know. However, from the sheer detail we can prove that there was heavy scrutiny of the case. From this, in five years, I have drawn together some deductions. Would you care to hear them?"

"I suppose that it is only a courtesy to allow a man his last dreams," Itachi coldly remarked, his eyes flicking to the side. "Do regale me with your delusions, before I kill you."

"This body is still that of Uchiha Sasuke, if you kill it, you kill both of us," the other Sasuke pointed out. Itachi's eye twitched. "Now, my deduction was that Fugaku-_chichi_ was planning something. The _what_, or _why_ escapes us, but from subsequent events, we believe it to be something major and treasonous. From the second point, we can guess that you fell out with Fugaku-_chichi_, which can only point to a dissention between father and son, an unprecedented event. Itachi Nii, you were in ANBU and you were loyal to our village. This can only mean treason. To merit the massacre of a clan would mean that the Uchiha clan was planning either the destruction or the takeover of Konoha. From our history as descendants of Uchiha Madara, the latter is more likely. However, that still does not explain why we are still alive. So, from there, we would have to jump to far-reached deductions as to why. From the parting words you gave us before leaving, we can only conclude that you wished us to kill you, and in that context, we can only believe that you wanted us to live unknowing of the Uchiha clan's dishonour. This would mean that somewhere, you still love us as your little brother. Am I correct?"

"Delusions," Itachi scoffed. "The dreams of a fool."

The other Sasuke smirked. "Liar."

"You have no proof, these are just the ramblings of fools without concrete evidence," Itachi pointed out. "How do you intend to prove it?"

"I'm glad you asked." the other Sasuke held the kunai to his throat. "Like this. I am going to stab here. Whether or not we survive is up to you."

"Oi, Sasuke!" Naruto began. "Are you mad!"

"Don't worry, Uzumaki San. Just stay there," the other Sasuke told him.

"What do you seek from this?" Itachi had grown to look nervous, well, as much as any Uchiha could. "You will merely die."

"I do not believe your claims," the other Sasuke clearly replied. "You have never met my eyes to openly claim so, as the Sharingan can tell. Just because I cannot activate it does not mean that it is not activated, Itachi Nii, and I can tell that you are lying. You must physically come over and stop me, which would prove that my hypothesis is correct if you truly value Uchiha Sasuke. If it is not, then I will at least spare _omote_ from having to kill his brother. You cannot use the Mangekyo Sharingan to stop me; to fracture _omote's_ mind any more would be to risk my completely taking over him, which would be his death in a sense. Sasuke is in a peaceful, deep sleep, and I can extend that forever." The kunai touched skin. "What will it be?"

"You bastard!" Naruto yelled, but unable to come any closer as the kunai was held to his friend's windpipe. "What are you doing?"

"Bringing a man out of denial," the other Sasuke coolly replied. The kunai dug deep into delicate skin and drew blood. From the side Itachi could see Kakashi and Sai attempting to move closer, restrained by some barrier. The four were watching the brothers' stand-off, two with wide eyes, and two … coolly appraising.

He then looked back to the stranger looking out from his brother's eyes.

"Tsukiyomi?" the other Sasuke suggested.

"How dare you," Itachi coldly replied. "I will get you out even if I have to reach into your mind and drag you out kicking and screaming."

"The most difficult person to stop, short of someone with something to protect, is someone with nothing to lose." Jab. A stream of blood slowly trickled down. "Try me."

"Then die." Itachi replied.

"I intend to." The blade slowly sank into his throat, millimetre by millimetre, slowly severing the carotid artery bit by bit by bit-

"You're serious," Itachi breathed.

"Look into my eyes, Itachi Nii, and see if truly, you can stop this." the not-Sasuke murmured. "If Sasuke dies, I die with him. No one here will help a ninja who wilfully commits suicide, even if said ninja was quite unaware of it." the stranger in the familiar eyes told him. "Only you can save him now."

The red eyes seemed to twinkle at him before they morphed back into black obsidian. Black, stunned obsidian.

"What the-?" Sasuke breathed before he keeled over.

Itachi caught him before he hit the ground.

* * *

><p>"Of all the things, we have a suicidal <em>yami<em> on our hands," Yuugi groaned later as the shinobi settled around the camp-fire.

Kakashi, Sai and Naruto were taking turns to stare at an impassive Itachi, who had done nothing but try to resuscitate and treat a Sasuke already weakened –ironically by the Genin's own hand– and on the verge of death. Kakashi and Sai had helped, but their medical knowledge did not truly extend beyond first aid and Naruto certainly did not have any healing skills hidden on him. Yuugi and Ryou were giving each other looks, but were dissuaded by their _yami_s from doing anything.

"What's a _yami_?" Naruto voiced, curious.

"A term used to describe the darkness in people's hearts," the other Yuugi answered. "The darkness of our hearts is often dispersed; few are completely light or completely dark. Those who are of light tend to show more empathy and kindness, but little in the way of self-preservation. Those of the dark tend to have no inhibitions and will do anything necessary for their goals. And then there are those who are split."

"Split?" Naruto winced.

Yami and Yuugi shared a look. "The two of us were once one soul," Yuugi took up where his partner left off. "One being, one consciousness, split in two. The purest form of light and dark, separated, never apart, never as one."

Kakashi's initial thought was: _Well, that explains the similarity in looks and the touchy-feely. _

"Bakura and Ryou are the same," Yami indicated to the two white-haired boys sitting far off. "And we know another pair who was like him."

"Like Sasuke?" Kakashi finally asked.

"Me and Bakura are three thousand years old." Yami reluctantly explained. "Our other halves went through the process of serial reincarnation while we were trapped. Being separated for that long has made it near impossible for us to rejoin together."

The shinobi blinked, except for Itachi, who impassively alternated between staring at the fire and at them. "Wow, that's old."

"Then there are those who develop a form of schizophrenia and end up with a dissociative identity disorder." Yami continued.

"A split personality," Kakashi translated for his blonde student.

"Yes, like the pair we knew. We got rid of it... but then the other half came back," Yami added upon seeing Itachi perk up. "There are methods for both halves to assimilate together again, become one personality, but they have to be specifically tailored and … I am not a psychologist. Maybe if I knew what caused the initial rift to happen I could do something."

"His brother killed his entire clan in front of him when he was seven and tortured him with some insane freaky mind Genjutsu directly after," Naruto quickly volunteered. "He then trained for five years to take revenge, and his brother did the same freaky jutsu again and caused him to land in hospital with a coma."

Kakashi and Sai shared a look that said: _Naruto clearly needs to work on his tact_. Itachi continued to stare at the fire.

Yuugi's eyes had widened to epic proportions while Yami had raised an eyebrow. "Anything else?"

"You need more?" Naruto incredulously replied.

"Not like that, idiot," Bakura sneered, walking over with Ryou in tow. "He means anything to explain Papa Bear over there." Bakura motioned to the ever impassive Itachi. With Kisame asleep after they changed from the circle to black chains, Kakazu and Hidan piled up next to him – especially Kakazu in barely more than bits and pieces held together by black thread – and Sasuke asleep with his head on Itachi's lap, Itachi's red Sharingan glared back at all of them like that of an avenging spectre.

Kakashi shrugged. Naruto shook his head. Only Sai nodded.

"I have heard from Danzo Sama about how the Uchiha clan tried to lead a coup d'etat." the Root ANBU replied. "They were ultimately dealt with using … drastic measures. Except for Uchiha San. Uchiha Itachi apparently pleaded with the Sandaime for Uchiha Sasuke to be spared." Itachi neither conformed nor denied any words.

Yami pulled out a card from his deck holster. "I need more details. Is there anything else?"

"Nothing that I know of," Sai shook his head. "And nothing else I can safely relay."

"I see," Yami replied, nodding.

"Yami, can we...?" Yuugi asked.

"Of course, _aibou_." Yuugi immediately took off towards Sasuke. Kneeling down next to the unconscious Genin, Yuugi held his hands over Sasuke's wounds. A faint yellow light shone when he touched it, as injured skin began knotting back together.

There was an uproar at that. "Why didn't you do that sooner!" Naruto yelled.

"Would you have answered our questions if we didn't?" Yami coldly replied.

Naruto would have answered if not for Kakashi's dissuasion. "It seems like we are at an impasse." Kakashi finally stated. "We obviously have untrustworthy parties present." His eyes lingered on the sleeping Kisame and the ever-impassive older Uchiha for a moment. "I have no doubt that you were hiding this skill set from Kisame earlier."

"Actually, keeping Hoshigaki San captive took it out of me for most of the afternoon," Yuugi sheepishly confessed. "And out of us, only me and Ryou can reliably heal others. Ryou doesn't have the control necessary yet, so it's just me."

"Ah," Kakashi non-committally replied. "The point is, we have come for you to retrieve … your property," he decided with another look at the Akatsuki members. "And somehow, it seems that we have taken up some additional baggage. The bodies can be dealt with, but these two..."

"Good point," Bakura pointed out. "Maybe we can just throw them in the Shadow Realm?"

Kakashi inwardly shuddered. "I was thinking of a less extreme option, really. Maybe a truce for now. We are currently in enemy territory and after one of their prized assets. It would be really unwise not to have help after one of our members has been incapacitated."

"But Kakashi Sensei–!" Naruto started.

"Naruto, being a ninja is about compromising to fulfil the mission," Kakashi cut in. "We reach Waterfall tomorrow, a foreign village filled with potentially hostile ninja who will capture us for information about Konoha and our abilities if possible. It's too late to turn back, so we must press on. Okay?"

Naruto sulked just as Yami said: "He will not do anything."

"What!" the shinobi couldn't believe their ears.

"Tomorrow I and Yuugi will enter the village with you, Uzumaki San and Sai San," Yami stated. "We will leave the two famous criminals here with Bakura and Ryou. Kisame I know will try to kill his partner, but he would be trapped by Bakura, so no matter. Either of us four are the only ones capable of resolving the situation caused by the other Sasuke, so Itachi cannot attack any of us and Sasuke should be safe. The fact that he has not tried to kill any of us is already proof that somehow, he wants his brother to live without the other Sasuke hanging around as a possible threat."

"But what about those two?" Sai indicated.

Yami pursed his lips. "I know that the one I dealt with will not be getting up any time soon. As for Bakura's...he might not be getting up ever."

Naruto paled.


	12. Chapter 12

"They are unusual," Itachi remarked to an alert and armed Kakashi on the night watch.

"Yeah," Kakashi non-committally replied, unwilling to part with any information. "Was what the other Sasuke claimed true?"

"If it was?" Itachi solemnly questioned. "What of it? The past cannot be changed."

"The future can," Kakashi argued. "His motivation for revenge almost drove Sasuke to commit treason against the village. He could have been _killed_ when he was sent back by Yami no Yuugi. All your actions would have been for nothing. You would have truly become the last Uchiha."

"I am resigned to fate," Itachi automatically replied. "But for once, if there was a wish fate could grant …"

"Yes?"

"I would wish that Sasuke never had to bear the burden of the Uchiha legacy," Itachi imparted. Coming from him, that was akin to pouring out his heart already.

"The one which started with fratricide," a voice spoke out. The two shinobi's heads turned to see Bakura and Ryou sitting by. "Started by Uchiha Madara killing Izuna, and continuing its ever bloody downward spiral. Your family's history is washed in blood, Itachi San. Its bloody history is available to those who can see into the past. Please put the senbon you're ready to spit out away, Itachi San."

Kakashi blinked as the nuke-nin obligingly spat out said senbon away from their circle of conversation.

"The other Sasuke might turn out to be a problem," Ryou softly told them. "There are only two known ways to us to get rid of a _yami_. One is for the original personality to make a stand. This will not last forever, as it is possible that the _yami _would completely subjugate the original."

"And the second?" Kakashi was almost afraid to ask.

"We play a Dark Game," Bakura spoke. "This has many associated side effects which aren't recommended anyway. Including but not limited to nyctophobia, fear of shadows, insanity, and possible death in interestingly gruesome ways. Oh right, and let's not forget the complete shattering of an already fragile psyche doubly traumatised."

The wince could only be spotted by someone looking for it. "Is there no other option?" the elder Uchiha asked.

"Grounding," Ryou absently replied. "In a … previous case, the main personality was able to overcome his _yami _because of the support of his elder sister and adoptive brother. Unfortunately, there seems to be a distinct problem with that."

"You mean, aside from that the Uchiha do not, as a rule, socialise, that I am Sasuke's only living family," Itachi flatly stated. "And that he hates me."

"His _yami_ is fixated on you," Ryou volunteered. "That means all hope's not lost yet. Look at it like this … at least he'll die without knowing the true bloody legacy of the Uchiha and the truth about this Tobi in your organisation."

The nuke-nin froze. "What do you mean?"

"A man with red eyes holding the puppet strings behind the Yondaime Mizukage," Ryou quietly stated. "A shadow in the darkness that seeks the powers of demons to fulfil a mad ambition. Only I know this; Yuugi knows that there is great sorrow, worry and darkness in your heart, but he knows not the details of your past or future."

"How?" Itachi managed to pronounce. "None believe him alive this day."

"I can see the past and future, Itachi San," Ryou evenly replied. "Your past is set in stone, true, but you stand at a crossroads in your road this day. A word of warning; your brother knows more than he lets on, as does Madara. All immortals hoard their secrets and knowledge like thieves. And, Madara knows about Sasuke. He is a consummate liar. That is all I can impart."

Silence echoed after that.

* * *

><p><em>Drip, drip, drip...<em>

_Moonlight streamed in through the little holes in the Shoji screens, illuminating upon carnage as the small boy slowly stepped through the shadows, eyes wide open as gleaming red eyes took in all the sights, nostrils flaring at the rank smells, eyes wet and heart thumping from panic..._

"_No," he called out. "Don't go in there!"_

"_Good boy, omote," a too-high voice whispered in his ear. "Don't worry, soon you'll be with your family forever. You'd like that, wouldn't you? Your family will never die..."_

"_That would be nice," he found himself saying. _

_The voice laughed. "Fugaku-chichi, come welcome your son..."_

"_Sa... suke..." Uchiha Fugaku moaned as his own bleeding corpse dragged itself before him. "Forgive me... Sasuke..."_

"_No!" He screamed, even as his dead clan members picked up their heaving, bleeding and dead corpses, turning blank faces towards him, the youngest living member of the clan, reaching out hands stained with their own blood towards him... "No!"_

"_Che," the voice scoffed. "Soon, omote, you'll be with your family forever, and I'll live your life for you."_

"_You can't!" He yelled. "It's mine!"_

"_What's yours is mine~, what's mine is yours~," the voice sang. "Because... I _am_ you."_

"_You, you can't..."_

"_I am you," and a pair of eyes so much like the Sharingan, only without the black tomoe that otherwise marred pure scarlet. "I'm Uchiha Sasuke too. And soon, I'll truly be Uchiha Sasuke, ne~?"_

* * *

><p>"What exactly is this property that they are trying to retrieve?" Itachi asked Kakashi later, having been left behind with the Jounin as the two Yuugioh pair with Sai and Naruto went to the Hidden Village of Waterfall. "And why did they need to drag Kakazu along?"<p>

"Gesture of faith," Kakashi shrugged. "As well as probably an apology for whatever they're about to do. I don't want to spoil the surprise, but I can say that it's something to do with collecting the _bijuu._"

"It seems like a fool's errand to send Genin along," Itachi remarked. "Even if one of them is the Kyuubi container."

"You heard what happened to Inari Castle recently?" Kakashi asked, leading on the conversation.

"The complete levelling of a stronghold so closely associated with the Sannin Orochimaru is difficult to miss," Itachi dryly remarked. "Although it is hard to believe, but it is nonetheless true."

"Yami no Yuugi and Bakura Yami were behind it," Kakashi told him. "How, I do not know, but I have first-hand evidence that the _bijuu_ are terrified of them."

Itachi's face fell into the expressionless mask that showed his surprise.

"Kyuubi's scared of them," Kakashi relayed further. "I can't see anything through my Sharingan. My summons and the Hokage's slugs freak out near them. Mount Myoboku went on high alert when they heard the news that those came. Frankly, I think the greater threat comes from those four than from Naruto."

"Quite the great exaggeration," Itachi said. "They do not look very strong. Then again, neither does Uzumaki Naruto. Dare I ask why?"

A sudden rumble echoed about the forest before a wave of chakra and killing intent, strong and sharp and thick as miasma, washed over them. Kisame was rapidly jerked awake, while Sasuke barely reacted from his place with Itachi's lap as his pillow. Hidan's corpse barely twitched, if it did at all.

And then the great beast towered over the forest skyline and roared.

The Nanabi beetle may not have the strength of the Kyuubi, or the sheer _ugliness_ and terror the Hachibi inspired, but there was no denying that what towered above the forest skyline then was one of the nine tailed beast which possessed powers beyond any human reach and could only be taken down by the Hachibi or the Kyuubi itself. It resembled a great rhinoceros beetle about the size of half an Olympic stadium, black armoured plates on its shell gleaming in the sunlight. Sitting astride it by its horn was…

"_Kami_ Sama," Itachi breathed.

"Kakashi!" Yami called from his perch on the beast's head, and Naruto and Sai was clearly clinging onto the great beast's fur with all their strength. "Is Uchiha Sasuke awake yet?"

"Still out," Kakashi yelled back, fully aware that the client was now sitting on the head of a freaking _bijuu_ and said demon was letting it up there like a docile pet would its master. He had reached the point in panic where the brain simply said, _ah, screw it, I can have a heart attack back home _and just decided to accept all the facts for the time being.

"What the–?" Kisame muttered. "Dear _Kami_, this makes Madara Sama look like a petty child."

"How do we get up?" Kakashi called.

As if on cue, three of the seven tails shot forward and curled around Kakashi, Itachi who had secured Sasuke, and Kisame and Hidan's body, lifting them to its head and gently placing them up there. Kakashi pinched himself for good measure to make sure that he wasn't dreaming. He wasn't.

"Kakashi Sensei!" Naruto yelled when the stunned Jounin landed on the surprisingly smooth exoskeleton. "You should've seen it! We presented Kakazu, got the bounty, and was negotiating with the Council. Those old geezers then asked for proof of ownership, which Yami did by doing some weird motions and then this girl screamed and suddenly this beetle came out and started roaring and then–"

"Naruto," Kakashi started. "We are now faced with one problem. Help me think about how to say that we left Waterfall on the head of a _bijuu_ to the Hokage."

"I think we can just tell Hokage Sama so," Sai bluntly replied. "It is a fact that cannot be changed, Kakashi Sensei."

Kisame coughed. And coughed. And coughed some more, for good measure. "What in the nine levels of Yomi are you people?"

Bakura gave the dangerous smirk. "Like our pets?"

Kisame opened his mouth, and then closed it.

"Very interesting," Itachi murmured. "I can almost see why. That, however, does not exactly answer our questions."

"Answers will come to those who wait," Yami murmured. "We should be able to return within the day like this."

"Is there going to be another war?" Kakashi asked warily.

"Oh, yes, attack a country affiliated with someone who has just proven to control the _bijuu_." Ryou blithely replied. "Very smart."

"We should also inform the Hokage to expect company," Yami remarked. "I can feel Malik and Marik coming. Odd; they never mentioned that they were expanding their holiday to the different dimensions."

"_What?"_ Ryou immediately exclaimed. "All three in the same area? Do we still want Konohagakure to be standing when we leave?"

"There were rumours about a resistance in some place called Water Country," Yuugi answered. "I bet those two will home in there."

"I agree," Bakura answered. "Which is all good anyway, because we need those two if we want any brat here to retain his sanity."

The nuke-nin's head snapped up immediately. "Why?"

Yuugi and Yami shared a look. "Because although we can perceive minds," Yami slowly started, "we don't have the tools on hand to do anything except Mind Crush him, which may be detrimental in the long term."

_Are you thinking what I think, aibou?_

_This guy is like Kaiba. _Yuugi mentally answered.

_I agree, _the dark murmured.

"Mind Crush?" Itachi murmured.

"Like it says," Yami shrugged. "Crush his mind and hope it can piece itself back together intact."

"I would rather use _Tsukiyomi_ on him myself," Itachi harshly answered, "before I let my brother's mind be willingly crushed."

_I stand corrected. This guy's worse than Kaiba._

_You might have a point there..._

"A suicidal _yami_," Yuugi groaned. "Well, that's a first. Normally _yami_s just look to kill their object of fixation and subjugate their other's mind. Except for my Yami, of course."

"Glad to see that you agree," the dark Yuugi murmured as the tailed beast marched onwards. "And, Kakashi San, I think it best if you left the explanation to your Hokage to us. I imagine that you will already be occupied with explaining to your student how he managed to gain a split personality."

* * *

><p>"You're serious about this..."<p>

The motley group on the ship headed east to Water Country would have caused several people to wonder as to their reasons. A tall, thin young man with black bangs covering the left side of his face blowing bubbles from a pipe, a dark-blonde girl turning adoring cerulean eyes on him, and by the starboard bay, two near-identical dark-skinned blondes in near-identical outfits of purple sleeveless jackets, cargoes and combat boots. The only difference lay in that one had his hair more-or-less neatly combed, while the other's hairstyle looked like the unholy product of bed-head gone wrong.

"You're serious," the sole brunette of the group stated incredulously. "You're serious about this. Really. You're serious about going to Kirigakure and fighting the Mizukage."

"You're getting repetitive," the slightly shorter one, Marik Ishtar, sighed. "What of it?"

"You're insane," the nuke-nin Utakata shot back. "Remind me why the hell am I here?"

"Blame the Rokubi," Marik suggested.

"Oh yes," Utakata bitterly replied. "All I got was a _'Yami Sama' _and nothing else. That doesn't explain why."

"It's ours," the more psychotic-looking one, Malik, growled, red eyes scanning the open seas. "_Omote_, we have company."

"Oh?" Marik sounded curious as mist drifted overboard to cover the top of the ship. "Interesting. What's the general plan?"

"They recognise the vessel, and are homing in," Malik dully replied. "A clean sweep, then. May I?"

"Not like you could do much damage on the open seas," Marik muttered. "Go ahead."

Malik let out a low, evil laugh, the ling that caused people's skin to crawl and even demons to whimper and hide somewhere and just generally whine not to let it near them, because somewhere inside the senses of self-preservation ring and complain and just generally wish for him and those like him to stay away. "Levia Dragon," he called to the seas, voice thrumming with power. "I call you. Come forth from the deepest seas!"

An answering roar was heard soon as the waters turned choppy, the shadows of the sea darkening as a huge life-form, serpentine and beautiful as it was deadly, broke through the water surface. The boat rocked about for a few moments before settling, but not before shouts from very surprised shinobi were heard.

"Levia Dragon," Malik airily declared. "Please clear the way."

The water serpent gave an answering roar before it sank back down into the deep, its shadowed body heading towards the direction of Water Country. The cries of panic could soon be heard as large splashes and roars sounded, breaking the night's previous silence.

"The Levia Dragon, Daedalus," Utakata echoed. "Defender of the Legendary Ocean Citadel."

Marik appraised him. "You have a better link to the _bijuu _than first thought," he observed.

"Does it matter, though?" Malik sneered as the currents awakened by Daedalus steered their boat towards land. "Listen well, _bijuu_. I intend to get my property back in three days from the other guy in Kirigakure. Therefore, if you slow us down, I'll get you. Understood?"

"It understands," Utakata dryly replied as he helped Hotaru disembark. "What the hell are you people?"

Malik grinned at him, eyes suddenly a brilliant red unlike the Sharingan but very much as fearsome, if not more so. "I am Darkness."

Marik rolled his eyes. "You mean, you're Yami Malik."

"Meh," Malik grunted, jumping onto the beach where the boat was washed up onto. "Semantics. I'm still darkness personified, right, _habibi_?"

"I cannot find it in my heart to disagree," Marik simply replied.

"Hold it," Utakata stated, still stunned from the sea-dragon. "If the Rokubi was your property, and you wanted to retrieve your other property, and you're here, and the only other _Jinchuuriki _here is the Sanbi … No way. Only three days!"

* * *

><p>Later, the shinobi world would be taken by storm when Terumi Mei overthrew the Fourth Mizukage in a bloodless coup d'etat, becoming the first female Mizukage ever and ending the terror that was the rule of the Fourth Mizukage Yagura. People would forever wonder how did the woman do that, and what monster did Kiri produce this time. The secret would never move past the walls of the Mizukage office, nor would it move past the lips of Konoha, who knew the true circumstances only out of happy coincidence…<p>

"Told you," Utakata muttered as Kiri ninja armed to the teeth assembled around them.

"Not at all," Marik remarked. "All of you, kill yourselves."

"There's no way that –" the bubble blower hung loose in his hand as the Kiri shinobi turned their kunais to their own throats. "What in the world –?"

"Oh, look," Malik conversationally stated as an explosion sounded in the distance. "Something's started."

"Let's see, then," Marik replied conversationally, sidestepping the cooling corpses towards the explosion, the other three following in his wake.

"_Shisho_, is this normal?" Hotaru muttered.

"One, don't call me that. Two, no, it's not," Utakata shot back with equal measure. "Shinobi invasions are normally more bloody than these..."

"Wait," Marik commanded one of the shinobi about to kill himself. "You, show us to the Mizukage."

"Yes, master," the Kiri shinobi dully bowed before walking.

Right into an explosion of fire.

"Oh my," a smiling red-haired woman in a dark blue dress said as she jumped down a roof to the ground. She was soon followed by a man with messy grey hair, pink eyes and a scar down one cheek. "We've involved civilian casualties."

"Utakata," Yagura said. "Traitor to Kirigakure. Die."

"Traurigkeit!" Marik ordered, as a teal-haired half-male half-female pink-skinned fiend with bichromatic eyes appeared in a burst of purple smoke, wings flaring, just as Yagura began attacking.

"Stop– what the?" Mei was stopped immediately by Utakata. "What are you doing?"

"Property retrieval," Utakata replied as Yagura impacted on the fiend. "They're here for the Sanbi."

"What makes you think they can–?" the future Mizukage was cut off as Yagura screamed the yells of the truly demented, cuts appearing on his abdomen.

"You don't run, you," Malik snarled, walking over. "Show yourself."

Chakra burst from the Fourth Mizukage, coalescing into a solid form of a grey turtle shell studded with spikes, three long scale-covered tails waving about crashing buildings here and there as the giant member of the order _Testudines _landed on the ground and howled, human-like forearms twisting into the ground.

"Excellent," Malik snarled, his face a twisted mask of glee. "_Felgrand Dragon_!"

A golden dragon, similar in build to a seahorse, descended from the sky, reptilian roar enough to put the Sanbi to shame as it landed to the hard shell and actually cracked it.

"Bow," Malik stated.

_Yami, _the great beast caused more tremors upon the ground as its body crashed with earth. _Yami... Sama... Yami Sama..._

"Sama?" Mei asked.

"Don't ask," Utakata replied. "They wouldn't answer."

"Good," Malik growled. "You recognise me, right?"

_Y-Yes..._

"Do you remember the Levia Dragon?" Marik asked from where he was walking towards the great beast.

_Dae... dalus... Daedalus..._ _Kairyuushin..._

"The dragon last night?" Utakata muttered.

"We're going to return you home," Marik stated, pulling a card out from his pocket.

_Home...? Umi... kairitai...arigato..._(lit. Sea... I want to go home... thank you...)

"Welcome back to the Shadow Realm," Malik called as Marik slapped the card onto the great beast, enveloping the beast in purple smoke. From the smoke landed a figure, Yagura, into the dirt as the golden dragon cried out and vanished. "One collected, one to go. Oi, you."

"Scary..." Mei muttered as she produced a kunai. "What?"

"Not you," Malik dismissively replied, walking over to Utakata. "That guy. He has our property as well."

"Is it going to be painful?" Utakata asked with some trepidation as Malik produced a brown-backed playing card that now looked ominous given that its twin had sealed the Sanbi.

Malik grinned openly as he caught onto the rapidly retreating shinobi. "You try it and tell me."

Utakata yelling broke the two hundred decibel mark throughout the entire Water Country that day.

Soon after, the two dark-skinned blondes disappeared from Kirigakure celebrating the coronation of the next Mizukage. Where to, no one actually knew, but reports state that the sea serpent was sighted leaving the coasts of Water Country at sunset, with what could be two figures atop its heads as it swam off west. Popular opinion was that the two were spirits from the other worlds come for the Sanbi and Rokubi and to retrieve the rest of the _bijuu. _

They have no idea how correct they were.


	13. Chapter 13

_It was dark and gloomy and almost silent, what little light filtered out further by the Shoji screens about the rooms as he slowly awoke to see, gleaming in the darkness, a pair of cerise eyes. _

"_It is so dark here because of you," that voice whispered, the one like rustling leaves and dripping blood sighed, just as another voice spoke: _

Foolish little brother, if you wish to kill me, hate me, detest me. And yet survive in an unsightly way. Run, run and cling to life, and when you have the same eyes as mine, come to me...

"_So much blood," the too-high voice so much like his own, yet so unlike it, whispered. "It is so lonely to be stuck in a place not even of my own choosing. Soon, omote, you will remain in the shadows you love so much, and I will embrace light in your place... your family waits for you..."_

_The cold, clammy grip on his limbs tightened again as he screamed: "No! No! Go back!"_

"_This is the hell of your own choosing," the voice spoke. _

Run, run, and cling to life... _his own brother's soft voice echoed. _

"_And when you finally sink into the darkness, omote... I will embrace life."_

* * *

><p>A blink of an eye found Uchiha Sasuke wide awake, skin cold and clammy despite the warm daytime. From his touch, he guessed that they were on something smooth, hard, like armour... what the?<p>

He quickly sat up, attracting the notice of the shinobi present.

"Good morning," Yuugi chirped in front of him, Yami beside him as always. "Don't talk too much. Your split personality tried to kill you and himself yesterday in a bid to force your brother to admit the truth. You know, you're a pretty special case."

The younger Uchiha blinked. "What?"

Yami sighed. "You have a split personality. Basically, you have a stranger behind your eyes, who is more or less your every negative desire personified, and is fixated on killing Uchiha Itachi. Yes, I think that set the background perfectly. As to what happened, your split personality confronted your brother, and held a kunai to your throat and actually slit your artery, just missing the jugular, when he didn't answer."

"Oi, _teme_!" Naruto yelled happily somewhere behind Yuugi. "You're awake! Now you can take over steering duty –!"

"Personally, Naruto, I think Sasuke San is more suited to navigation," Sai's monotone cut in. "At the very least, it would save us the trouble of deciphering Kakashi Sensei's instructions."

"Well, I'm pulling a watch on our so-called prisoners, two of our guests are busy controlling our ride, the other two and doing something I don't know and don't have the guts to ask, and I don't see any other friendly Jounin within a five-kilometre radius," Kakashi's voice sounded. "Naruto, steer it straight. I don't want to accidentally end up in Kusagakure on the back of the Nanabi."

Sasuke quickly turned back to see Kakashi, dirty book out, cross-legged out of reach of a tied-up Kisame and an ever-impassive Itachi. As the two Uchiha met eyes, Sasuke could feel the old anger and hurt and thirst of revenge rising, his eyes bleeding into the blood-red of the Sharingan...

_and a hand reached through the darkness for him..._

The black-haired Genin gasped as a migraine sank in, doubling over onto what he realised were armoured plates. "Argh..."

"Oi, _teme_, you okay?" Naruto yelled. He chose not to answer.

"Sasuke," Kakashi assured him. "There are some things to clear up when we get back to the village. We are safe for now."

"Not... like... I... can..." he ground out through the splitting pain as the migraine slowly subsided.

"How are you, Otouto?" Itachi sounded, as much as any Uchiha could, concerned.

"My head hurts," Sasuke decided to try for bare civility for the moment.

It was then that the truth sank in. "Kakashi... Sensei?"

"Yeah?"

"Are we riding on the _Nanabi_?"

"Why, yes, we are. In fact, I'm in the midst of drafting a mission report, and I'd appreciate help in writing it in a way that doesn't sound like we're all high on LSD."

A headache of a completely different nature was sinking in. "Sensei, did we send notice ahead?"

"Ah... knew I forgot that. Meh, we're within sight of the gates, anyway."

* * *

><p>The slow, pondering steps of the tailed beast contrasted with the rapid heartbeat Tsunade felt in her chest as she watched the great beetle ponderously come forward down the main path from Taki to Hii, hardly daring to believe the words of the watchers. Even the Hyuuga clan had confirmed without a doubt that the great monster currently moving towards Konoha at twelve o'clock was the seven-tailed beetle, so legendary the beast was.<p>

It was when the black behemoth was so close to the village she could see the sunlight gleam off its black shell that she realised that there were … people on it.

The Kabutomushi paused before the grand gates of Konohagakure, six legs apart and great horn directly before the gates itself, before it sank crouching on the ground.

At the base of the horn itself, Uzumaki Naruto jumped, yelling: "Baa Chan! We're back!"

Tsunade of the Sannin had seen a lot of things in her kunoichi career, but this had to take the cake.

"Tsunade Sama?" Shizune asked, standing beside her.

"Shizune."

"Yes?"

"Extra strength Tylenol, sake enough to drown in, and Kakashi's report, as well as my application for a day off filled in."

"... Count me in, Tsunade Sama."

* * *

><p>"Incredible," Tsunade sighed, downing the sake. It was against office ethics, but she'd take blissful oblivion compared to the impending cardiac arrest that threatened Jiraiya at the sight. The Toad Sage had merely keeled over unconscious and was still out, which was definitely what the Goudaime Hokage wanted to do right now, even a week after Team Kakashi's stunt. "Do I want to know <em>how<em> and _why_ is Uchiha Itachi sitting in front of my desk right now?"

"What am I, chopped liver?" Kisame grumbled from his tied up position by the Hokage's desk, but a glare from Bakura and Kakashi's threatening motions shut him up.

"This scroll I wrote while held in detention would hopefully satisfactorily explain everything," Itachi produced said scroll. "If not, then think of my return as a familial concern."

Kisame shook his head. "You know, if this is your 'familial concern' to defy death by walking back into your village, I feel terrified of your 'familial revenge'."

"That does not explain why Hoshigaki Kisame is here," Tsunade pointed out, nose-deep in the scroll.

"Yami asked for him to be hauled out of prison for this," Bakura flippantly replied. "The ANBU were pretty quick to react."

Yes, Tsunade thought. Faced with the entire team riding the seven-tailed beetle home tended to impact the ANBU present with the gate guards (read: all the ANBU) a lot. Ordering the seven-tailed beetle about like a pet just reinforced the impression. _Danzo_ actually did the fish impression when the beetle stopped just beyond the grand gates of Konoha and from the top descended the entire team, two captured Akatsuki members, one unconscious member and another ninja wearing primarily bandages. Imagine their surprise when the ninja turned out to be a summons.

"We're all here?" Yami asked as he walked in with Yuugi.

"Hokage Sama," Yuugi timidly began. "We have … friends who are on their way here, and we'd like to request you to send escorts, as they come with very precious cargo."

"What _kind_ of cargo?" Tsunade was almost afraid to ask.

"A hint," Yami answered. "They are coming from a recent trip through Water Country."

Kisame immediately perked up. "Yagura is dead? Seriously?"

"That answers a lot of questions," Tsunade grimly said. "We have just received news that the Kiri nuke-nin Utakata assisted Terumi Mei in a successful bloodless coup against the Fourth Mizukage, effective as of only today. I assume your friends had a hand in that."

"Malik said that they just strolled in, took the beasts and strolled off," Yuugi dryly replied. "How true that statement is I have no idea. However, knowing those two..." he drifted off.

"The coup was bloodless?" Itachi was honestly surprised. "How did they manage that?"

"Officially, credit goes to the new Goudaime Mizukage, Terumi Mei," Tsunade started. "Unofficially, the Mizukage has sent out a notice searching for two dark-skinned near-identical twin blondes. She also adds that those blondes have strange powers beyond their understanding."

"Way to go," Yami cursed. "Now all eyes would be searching for them."

"Crap," Bakura swore.

"On a brighter note, they're not riding the Sanbi to Konoha," Yuugi sheepishly added. "So we don't have to worry about another scare."

"Madara is going to be pissed," Kisame started, an unholy grin on his face.

"Speaking of which..." Tsunade put down the scroll. "I believe you. The events of the past years are too much to be coincidental. However, I am extremely interested to know if the _bijuu_ could be reached once Yami no Yuugi or one of your compatriots have them."

"Not likely," Yami admitted. "Unless dimensional travel is included in his repertoire, then no. Even then, highly unlikely. Even if he could hold one thrall, there are numerous monsters in the realm in question than is safe for anyone."

"With that settled," Tsunade steepled her hands. "Uchiha Sasuke."

"What about him?" Yami asked. Itachi perked up immediately.

"I would like you to cure him."

"I do not specialise in mind work," Yami blandly replied. "The only two times I had to step in was using a Mind Crush, and we ended up with Malik and Marik. I could, however, request Marik to take a look. However, why not your own? I think ninja have their mind reading techniques as well, no?"

Tsunade sighed. "I am curious to know how such information made its way to you. To answer your question, our shinobi were thrown out by the split personality."

"I have sources," Yami nodded. "The Ninja Grandmaster said that he was formerly from this village."

"Nuke-nin?" Tsunade questioned.

"Dead, actually," Yami blandly replied. "His real name is Sasuke. Beyond that we cannot reveal anymore, save that he was from a prominent clan."

"Grandmaster Sasuke..." Itachi's face was carefully blank. "Ah."

"Next on the agenda," Tsunade consulted a report. "Two Akatsuki have been sighted heading to Wind Country!"

"Ichibi?" Itachi stated. "I see."

Tsunade rounded on to Itachi. "You obviously know the Akatsuki agents sent. Tell us."

"Kisame would kill me before that information leaves my mouth," Itachi honestly answered. "He is that way."

"Glad you remember," Kisame dryly replied. "So, I just have a few last words to say."

"You will not be giving any eulogies, Hoshigaki San," Yuugi shook his head. "Not any time soon."

Kisame smirked. "What's to stop you from me biting my tongue?"

Yami smirked. A certain Kiri ninja suddenly lost all confidence as he looked into bloody eyes that promised pain with no end in sight. "Bakura," he purred. "It appears we have a suicide risk. Do you think we can seal his soul in a nice figurine?"

Bakura cackled. "Or we could throw him into the Shadow Realm."

To the shinobi's great surprise, Kakashi actually openly shuddered.

* * *

><p><em>You have a stranger behind your eyes, who is more or less your every negative desire personified, and is fixated on killing Uchiha Itachi.<em>

_So why am I looking at myself? _Sasuke decided to ask himself as he considered his own eyes in the reflective surface of a bowl of soup. Granted, Ichiraku Ramen was not the best place for self-reflection, but he needed someone around just in case...

_Just in case I lose it... _

He thought back to Yamanaka Inoichi's words: _Kid, your mind is heavily guarded by someone who looks like you, but I can't get through. I can't do anything like this._

The notion that there was a stranger hidden behind your very eyes was a terrifying prospect.

_Does Naruto live like this all the time? Does he have to worry about losing his sanity overnight, or being trapped in his mind? What about that Gaara? Do all Jinchuuriki live like this, with this feeling? Does that make me one?_

**Of course not~**

The porcelain bowl went crashing to the ground as Sasuke quickly stood up and backtracked away. Noodles and soup with the occasional ingredient splashed onto the floorboards of the ramen stand as the younger Uchiha took a deep breath.

_Itachi. Itachi would know. He's locked up in the Tower now, he'll know. If there was someone who knows if the Mangekyo Sharingan came with insanity, it'll be Itachi. _

"Sasuke!" Naruto half-yelled, cleaning up his tenth bowl of the day, Sai wearing a gobsmacked expression on his face. "You wasted good ramen!"

"I gotta go to the Tower," the younger Uchiha shot back, turning on his heel. "There's a few questions that need answering."

"I'm coming with you," Naruto jumped up, putting his payment on the Ichiraku counter, indignity for the mana that was ramen forgotten at Sasuke's expression. "Thanks, _jiji!_ Sai, c'mon. Our team-mate needs assistance."

Sai blinked. "His business does not pertain to us, nor do we have a mission at hand."

"But you're on the team, and team-mates stick together," Naruto shot back before he grabbed Sai and dragged the surprised Genin in a running Uchiha's wake.

* * *

><p>"Akatsuki work in pairs, and we have identified four primary members. Unfortunately, Kisame would kill Itachi before he could speak, and Kisame himself would never talk, hence we are stuck am an impasse," Tsunade summed up.<p>

"Yagura is gone..." Kisame muttered. "Ah hell. It's not like the Goudaime Mizukage would welcome me back with open arms anyway. With me being captured, and seeing as five of the nine targets are here, I might as well talk."

"Your situation is an interesting one," Yami commented. "In shogi terminology, the drop rule has come into effect."

"An accurate summation," Itachi dryly muttered. "Akasuna no Sasori, paired with Deidara, formerly of Iwa, would be with him. Kisame and I have changed sides, Sasori and Deidara are heading to Suna, Kakazu and Hidan are… missing in action, our Leader Pein and his right hand Konan we have no idea, and Tobi no doubt on his way to Kiri to find out what happened to Yagura in the wake of his death with Zetsu in tow. That would be the ten primary members, unless they have recruited more. Below that are numerous mercenaries loyal only to the organisation and indirectly to Tobi, who also goes as Uchiha Madara."

"So, the number one threat as of now would be this Madara," Bakura mused.

"We were actually taking a verbal message to Orochimaru while in Taki," Itachi confessed. "The actual contents of the message are with Kisame."

"He wishes for an alliance with Otogakure," Kisame dully recited. "And we were to inform Kakazu and Hidan to strike at Kumo. However, that plan has been shelved due to what happened to them at your hands. I want to live, thank you," Kisame shuddered. "And it looks like hanging about you people would be fun."

They proceeded to ignore him.

"Well, then," Yami sighed. "We must leave. Yuugi and I have an expedition to plan."

"Wait –" Tsunade never got to finish when an ANBU reported in. "Hokage Sama, there has been sightings of Oto-nin infiltrating us. Are there any plans?"

"The prisoner we took last time mentioned that Orochimaru intends to declare himself the Otokage and for Sound to be the sixth great village," Tsunade muttered. "We will hold our position for now until Orochimaru has moved. He will most likely investigate sightings of the Nanabi no Kabutomushi moving towards Konoha. Inform Team Gai that I wish them to take on a long-term mission." Her gaze turned to the Yuugioh pair, who were cuddling so close that Kakashi actually had to move away from them in a moment of awkwardness. "We are increasing the guard on them."

* * *

><p>Uchiha Sasuke was visibly pissed. Having stormed to the Hokage Tower to be informed that the Hokage was in an important meeting and could not be disturbed, he was reduced to staring into the still waters of the pond he used to train at, awakening the Sharingan at interim to check that the tomoe were still there, and his eyes had not gone 'all red' like Naruto had described. It appeared that he was being overly paranoid, but one never knew.<p>

"It's fine," Naruto muttered, plonking himself behind Sasuke, not exactly stupid enough to get himself in a position for Sasuke to throw him into the water. "Now quit staring at your looks, Sasuke- _teme_, and we can get to training."

"Hn," he grunted, but stood up anyway. "Three-way taijutsu? Or ninjutsu?"

"Ninjutsu sounds acceptable," Sai nodded, pulling out a scroll and a brush. "Have I ever shown you my ink ninjutsu?"

"Ink? Cool!" Naruto yelled, awed as he jumped up and made a beeline to Sai. "Show us, show us!"

"Stop that," Sasuke shot at the blonde. Although he privately admitted that the ink animals were definitely cool, jumping off the scroll at the very moment of life to begin attacking them.

The inner Uchiha demanding so, he set most of them on fire with a katon, before escaping into the trees to watch Naruto and his amazing application of _kage_ _bunshin_ before he felt the Sharingan activate.

_Let me out..._

Shivering slightly, the Uchiha jumped down to the ground and pulled out two kunais, one in each hand as he willed the Sharingan to close.

* * *

><p>As the sun overhead descended, two dark-skinned blondes were sighted walking up to the grand gates. One was cackling madly, the other cackling only marginally less so.<p>

"Halt!" the gate guardians started. "You are within the sight of _Konohagakure no Sato_! State your names and business within the village!"

"We have friends in the village, don't we, _habibi_?" Malik asked.

"Of course we do, Malik." Marik turned to the guards. "Er... Ishtar Marik and Yami Malik. We're here to meet up with a friend inside."

"The names of your friends?" The guards asked stonily.

"What was it...?" Marik counted off his fingers. "Right. Mutou Yuugi, Bakura Ryou, Yami no Yuugi, Bakura Yami," Marik summed up, while Malik amused himself with laughing as the guard's face grew rapidly paler. "Now do I have to kill you, or can we get in now?"

"Right this way," the guard nervously saluted, a far cry from his previously tough act. "Er... Ishtar Sama, Yami Sama."

"We don't eat small children, contrary to popular opinion," Malik murmured to the guard as they left. "We do like blood, though."

The guard blinked. _This guy… responded to my thoughts?_

* * *

><p>The three had finished their warm-up training and were about to start for real when they felt it. <em>It<em> was hardly killing by any means, although the feeling was certainly malevolent enough to want to kill for no reason at all.

Naruto felt _something_ skitter across his skin as the demon within barked. Sai and Sasuke froze for a moment upon contact with the malevolent force, before jumping back to turn around and see its source.

Two near-identical blondes greeted their sight. One wore his hair shoulder length, lying flat down, longs bangs framing a dark-skinned face with lavender kohl-lined eyes. The other had his hair sticking up in all directions, a mocking visage of a grin on his face, gleaming kohl-lined eyes with red pupils like a sunset, and it was from him that the malevolent feeling came from.

"State your name and business," Sai ordered, scroll and brush at the ready.

"Why?" the second asked. "It's not like anything useful could come of it."

"We have never seen you before," Sasuke replied. "And you may be hostile forces."

The two exchanged looks. "Right," the second drawled. "So why would hostile forces walk around as if they were lost?"

"We _are_ lost, Malik," the first pointed out.

"No we aren't, Marik," Malik replied, still grinning. "My homing senses are picking up on those like us, you know."

"_Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!_"Naruto produced numerous clones. "Right, we'll just bring you to O Baa Chan then."

"Cute," Marik commented. "He can duplicate himself."

"My turn!" Malik happily exclaimed. "_Revival Jam_!"

A large silver-coloured blob appeared in thin air, hovering beside Malik. "Take out the middle one!"

"Wha–?" the real Naruto hidden in the clones was immediately knocked out of the crowd, the blob reassembling itself from having been shattered by the clones before dispelling the clones.

"Interesting," Sai commented, drawing quickly.

"Agreed," Sasuke ran through several hand seals. "_Hosenka no Jutsu_!" He aimed at Marik, who merely smiled before lifting his hand. A hand holding an eerily familiar playing card...

"_Raigeki_!" the lightning easily made short work of the fireballs. "_Hinotama_!" Spheres of fire rained down upon the ninja.

"Crap!" Sai muttered as his scroll caught fire. "Naruto San, are you okay?"

"More or less," Naruto absently stomped down where his pants had been singed. "Yami … That's Yami's cards!"

"Oh?" Malik sounded amused. "_Makyura_."

A masked warrior with claws long enough to rival Wolverine appeared in a burst of purple smoke. "Get him." Malik snarled.

"Malik!" Marik yelled. "We don't need to kill them!"

"_Habibi_, I haven't killed anyone in weeks!" Malik shot back.

"It's only one week!"

Makyura the Destructor had disarmed Naruto with ease and was about to slash down when the blades were intercepted by none other than Gaia the Fierce Knight.

"Malik, enough," Yami instructed, card out in his hand. Beside him, Yuugi was hauling up Naruto. "Marik, long time no see."

"Hi," Marik cheerfully greeted, dismissing Makyura and Revival Jam with a wave of his hand. "We got the cargo. Oh, by the way, we also stopped a possible invasion on the Kiri end and invaded a hidden village. It was really fun. Can we do that next time?"

"I'll bring that up for consideration," Yami diplomatically replied. "Shall we? I imagine that you would wish to clean up now."

"You know those guys?" Naruto asked Yuugi as he watched the two blondes follow Yami.

"Friends of ours," Yuugi shrugged. "A tad more homicidal than most people, but otherwise okay."

"I'll never call Anko crazy again," Naruto muttered. "The Malik guy makes her look sane."

Yuugi blinked at him. "Malik _is_ insane. He's a _yami._"

"Figures," Sasuke muttered. "That would actually explain a lot."

"I agree," Sai answered, slumping down by a tree trunk and pulling out a book. "We should conclude our training here and report this to the Hokage."

"The Hokage already knows," Sasuke dismissively answered, walking over to Sai with Naruto closely following. "How do you think the village could miss those two?"

"What're you drawing?" Naruto asked.

He may not have known it then, but Naruto had already started on the path of reaching out to the ROOT operative.


	14. Chapter 14

It was night when the ANBU cell door swung open, one of the masked elites standing by the doorway. "Uchiha Itachi," the soldier stated. "Please come with me for your trial."

The ever-impassive shinobi nodded solemnly, stepping out of the door and accepting te chakra-restraining cuffs clipped around his wrists. Before him he could see Kisame with the same, only that in the Kiri nuke-nin's case, the ANBU was accompanied by a boy with long shaggy white hair.

"What are you doing here, Bakura?" he murmured.

Said thief turned to him, grinning widely. "Offering a proposition to Shark Boy here," he airily replied. "We played a game. Kisame, tell him how was the game."

"I never want to play with you again," the former Swordsman of the Mist replied after a while. "Your _game_ should be located to the ranks of T&I. Hell, T&I could get tips from it. On second thought, no. I don't need to live through T&I playing your game."

"Think about it," Bakura drawled, walking further ahead before disappearing into the gloom despite his white hair.

Itachi remained silent as the ANBU led him towards a room, bare of furniture save for a heavy wood-topped steel-framed table, by which Tsunade sat waiting.

"Hokage Sama," Itachi bowed.

"Mm," Tsunade acknowledged. "As it stands, there are three options. One, we execute you. You're the first decent Uchiha I've met, so I'm a bit reluctant to do that. Two, you escape. Given how you are in the midst of ANBU headquarters, not very likely either."

"And the third?" Itachi politely asked.

"We pull your name from the missing roster, citing a long-term undercover mission and covering up the true events of the Uchiha Massacre," Tsunade answered flatly. "However, considering the threat of Akatsuki, I am reluctant to consider that option."

"Madara thinks the Sanbi escaped into the waters of Kiri," Itachi murmured. "Imagine his surprise when the sole _bijuu _he possessed is gone."

"Oh, and about Sasuke," Tsunade continued. "I got Inoichi to check his mind."

Itachi nodded. "The results?"

"It's guarded," Tsunade told the elder Uchiha. "But from what Inoichi glimpsed before he was forcibly ejected from Sasuke's mind, there are two personalities of Sasuke. I've run medical check-ups on Team Kakashi following their return, and Shizune reported a noticeable increase in his brain size after he reported migraines, though not enough to put him off training. Inoichi theorizes that the second personality is attempting to assert dominance over the original, hence explaining the increase in brain size to accommodate the new mind."

Itachi blinked. "Ah. The expected conclusion?"

"There are currently two minds in one body. The average body can't tolerate this stress for long, so sooner or later, one mind has to go."

_And it might be Sasuke, _was the unspoken implication.

"However, our current experts can do nothing about that," Tsunade nodded. "So, I have laid out your choices before you. Think and choose, Uchiha Itachi."

"Why?" Itachi muttered as the Hokage turned to go. "Why offer this to me?"

The Sannin took a while to consider. "I was recommended this course of action. Oh, and, medical check-up for you tomorrow. Dying men have no right to protest treatment."

The elder Uchiha froze at that statement. "How?"

"The eyes." Tsunade simply replied. "You're a dead man walking. And, Sasuke doesn't know everything. At least, we haven't told him everything he couldn't figure out for himself."

"And... those four?" Itachi asked again.

"Yami no Yuugi," Tsunade breathed. "Mutou Yuugi. Bakura Yami. Bakura Ryou. And the newest two, Ishtar Marik and Yami Malik. They have not done anything to him yet nor have they told him anything. However, that is subject to change."

"Are they on Konoha's side?" Itachi asked.

The Fifth Hokage took a long while to consider. "For now, while our interests coincide with theirs."

"Then the opportunity must be seized," Itachi mused. "What about Danzo?"

"After the stunt the team pulled, he is lying low for the moment," Tsunade answered, chuckling slightly. "Riding the Nanabi to Konoha's gates had a greater impact than we thought."

* * *

><p>The eyes opened to show bright cerise eyes, clear as any ruby.<p>

"Good evening," the boy nodded towards the short, tri-coloured haired figure standing before him. "He's asleep for now."

"I don't suppose that you would tell me the circumstances behind you?" Yami prompted.

The boy shook his head. "No. I will not risk being thrown back."

"Yami nodded slowly. "I see."

The boy snorted. "The fact that I am here speaks volumes already. Sasuke's hatred festers deep, and gives this darkness strength enough. You are not with me, but not against me, is that correct?"

"Unless my light says otherwise," Yami nodded. "Bakura and Malik stick to the same policy as well. Try not to get caught."

"I don't intend to." the boy coldly replied. "And," here his voice turned softer. "Thank you. I do not think I would have the strength to break through enough even in five years without your appearance."

"You do not have a name," Yami sighed. "What do I call you?"

"Why do you think I wear this face?" the boy replied, as Yami turned to go. "I am Uchiha Sasuke."

Yami sighed, a hint of regret evident in his voice. "Soon you will learn the common lesson all of us do; that your other's identity is not yours."

The boy's cerise eyes watched as Yami disappeared into shadows, before he forlornly contemplated the dark house's shadows.

"It might not be mine," the boy sadly said, as cerise eyes bled out to obsidian. "But it's all I have."

_Itachi_, he silently cursed before walking back to his room.

* * *

><p>In the ANBU headquarters, Itachi sneezed.<p>

"Sasuke?" he muttered, before he entered his cell to contemplate his choices.

* * *

><p>The next morning saw the beginnings of the carnage of a new training ground.<p>

"You ready, Tomb Robber?" Malik yelled from across the training field.

"Ask yourself, Tomb Keeper!" Bakura yelled back as both drew a five-card hand.

"What are they doing?" A nervous Kakashi asked, something telling him to stay far away from them. Beside him stood Naruto, still rubbing sleep from his eyes, the ever impassive Sai, and a Sasuke with pronounced eye-bags, acting under nervous disposition.

"Training," Yami flatly replied, holding the referee flag. "It's an open secret that the Hokage allows us use of a different training ground a week, because otherwise we'll be using the same barren wasteland each week."

"Barren wasteland?" Sai muttered.

"Game start!" Yami called.

"Duel!" both yelled as the shadows lengthened, the skies overhead darkened, and both began to glow an eerie purple light.

"I start first. Drillago!" the monster that was the product of a hedgehog and a drill appeared, appendages hissing as they spun.

"Oh, right," Marik added. "Malik runs a torture-device themed deck."

The shinobi had no idea what 'deck' meant, but the words 'torture device' they knew all too well.

"I can't tell if they had chakra," Sai commented. Sasuke nodded in agreement.

"That's it?" Bakura laughed. "Because this is a combat-oriented duel, ambush, Man-Eating Bug!"

A giant green bug grabbed onto the drill-monster and ripped its appendages off, before thrusting the drill bit through the machine. Kakashi rapidly swallowed, imagining how much that must hurt.

"Is it?" Malik laughed. "No matter. _Revival Jam_!"

The blob of silver-coloured goo appeared and smacked the bug, causing it to explode at speeds which Jounin would envy.

Malik's eyes narrowed.

Bakura's eyes narrowed.

What followed was the Shadow Ream equivalent of gun-slinging as spells and traps and monsters had it at each other. The following scenes were of such gory description as to be unprintable. Enough said.

"I just noticed," Naruto voiced out a while later, as Bakura and Malik landed on their knees, panting. "They didn't release the great big chicken."

Both the battling _yami_s turned their attention to the shinobi before sharing identically evil smiles.

"You thinking what I'm thinking, Malik?" Bakura snarled.

"Oh, yes," Malik growled.

Both turned to Yami, who checked his watch.

"Five hours," he reported.

The Genin shared looks before turning to Kakashi.

"I presume that it is my turn to show off then," Kakashi cheerfully stated.

"It would be an interesting match," Sai agreed, twitching as Kakashi pulled out his book.

A tic mark appeared on Yami's brow, before he pulled out a card and frowned. "I see. Monsters versus ninja, then."

He threw the card out. "_Harpie Queen_!"

A burst of light preceded the descent of a beautiful green-haired woman in a blue bodysuit, ending at her arms and legs in golden talons and claws that contrasted with her green locks. White-feathered wings ran the length of her arms as she proceeded to float just above the ground.

"Yuugioh," she greeted to both Yami and Yuugi, who bowed back.

She then turned to Kakashi, the Copy Ninja stunned by the beautiful Harpie Queen. Her eyes soon fell onto the book. Her left eye twitched.

"I'll leave this to you, Aria," Yami called.

"Understood," the strongest of the Harpie Ladies held her hands out, stretching to the sky. "_Mangekyo – Kareinaru Bunshin!_" (Kaleidoscope – Magnificent Replication [Elegant Egotist])

Mirrors appeared around her, and from these reflective surfaces emerged three more Harpie Ladies, one with long pink locks, one with short orange hair, the third with spiky blue hair, but all had purple-feathered wings.

"The Harpie Lady Sisters," she introduced. "Airo, Kerairo, Ocupete," she introduced the pink, orange and blue-haired ladies respectively. "My name is Aria, the Harpie Queen and strongest of the Harpie Ladies."

"You're pitting us against _women_?" Kakashi registered.

The four Harpie Ladies glared at him.

"_Cyber Bondage! Rose Whip!_" Within seconds, the Ladies flew higher, outfitted in armour and weapons.

Aria's grip tightened on her own whip. "_Harpie's Hunting Ground_!"

The field soon changed to a flat plain with nowhere for the shinobi to hide. Naruto sank his head into his hands. "You just had to."

"Attack him!" Aria cried, throwing her whip out to lash.

Kakashi grunted as he dodged, the whip grazing his leg as it passed. From behind, the pink-haired Harpie scratched at his back before flying high up to avoid Kakashi turning about, only for another to swipe at his back.

"I'll have to be serious, then," Kakashi lifted his headband.

"I think not. _Harpie no Haneboki_!" Aria called, as a wing-shaped feather duster appeared in her hand and she swung it in Kakashi's direction. The resulting winds and feathers covered the Sharingan eye, Kakashi swearing all the while.

"Sisters," Aria cracked her whip, trapping a panicked Jounin in place. "_Triangle __Ecstasy Spark_!"

Spheres of bright white light formed in the Ladies' hands as they flew in a triangle formation towards the stunned Jounin, the spheres connecting into a triangle before an X-shape formed in the triangle and a pink beam of light shot from it.

The resulting explosion resulted in one well-cooked Jounin.

* * *

><p>"Crazy," Jiraiya muttered as he spied on their training, hidden by a camouflage sheet behind the Genin. "It's like the Shodaime's jutsu. Aerial superiority, weapons and the ability to change the field, all can change the tide of battle."<p>

"Pervert!" the orange-haired Harpie Lady screeched as she threw Jiraiya into the field.

"Ero Sennin!" Naruto yelled as Jiraiya landed on his feet.

The crack of a whip alerted him that there was one angry Harpie Queen floating above him.

"Er..." Jiraiya stuttered, faced with the beautiful Queen.

"Ero Sennin, let's see how you do!" Naruto yelled.

"Don't call me that, brat!" Jiraiya yelled. "If you want a show, fine!" he turned to the Harpie Queen. "Sorry, but I'm not holding back."

"Then I will not either," Aria answered, raising a clawed hand to her lips and blowing a shrill whistle.

A roar signalled the arrival of a dragon and Jiraiya swallowed as the crimson reptile descended from the skies, the chain from around its neck twisting around the wrist of the Harpie Queen.

"Oh my..." Jiraiya could only answer.

"This is my strongest pet," Aria jingled the chain. "I have yet to see him lose against a mortal warrior such as your own."

"Mortal?" Jiraiya blinked.

"_Keh,_" the red-chakra fox-form of Kyuubi's head materialised beside Naruto. "_Sora __no Kodoku na Mai _[Lone Dance of the Skies], _Harpie Queen Aria_."

"Kyuubi," Aria nodded. "I see you're only at half strength."

"_Blame the stupid human,"_ Kyuubi replied. _"Being stuck in a host is boring. I don't care what Yubel says, it's boring as hell."_

"When did you –?" Naruto yelled out.

"_Yuugioh gives out dark power wherever he goes,"_ Kyuubi scoffed. _"Enough to tap in and let me watch anyway. He's screwed; that woman is over two thousand years old and is fierce as anything. That dragon is the mark of the Queen, it won't lose to any Kuchiyose so easily, not with its mistresses nearby." _

"This mortal warrior has back-up too!" Jiraiya bit his thumb. "_Kuchiyose no Jutsu!_"

The dragon growled as the Toad Boss Gamabunta appeared in a burst of chakra smoke. "**Jiraiya?**" It yelled. "**What the –? A dragon? Where the hell did you find a freaking dragon!**"

"So that's a boss summon," Sasuke nodded, awed by the size.

"Boss!" Naruto yelled. "We're training with it at the moment! Then Ero Sennin came and now he and you are going to fight them!"

"**I am going to kill you, Jiraiya...**" the Toad Boss muttered, before its sight wandered down to Yami and Yuugi. "**You guys are new, eh?**"

"My name is Yami no Yuugi," Yami greeted. "This is my partner, Mutou Yuugi."

"**I can sense the great power on you,**" the Toad Boss muttered. "**So, you're the wielders that the Two Great Sage Toads are fussing over, eh? Don't know if your summon is worth it, though.**"

"_Gamabunta, you shouldn't underestimate things you don't understand,"_ the Kyuubi's ghost cackled.

"Why?" Naruto asked.

"_If the mistress takes the field, that dragon's going to get a power up,"_ Kyuubi chuckled. _"And, high as the frog might jump, it can't reach the sky while that dragon and those Harpies can fly."_

"My dragon, attack!" Aria called.

"_In short_," Kyuubi summarised. "_He's screwed."_

The dragon roared.

Jiraiya shivered.

* * *

><p>"Sensei," Tenten groaned as they passed another training ground. "Are you sure we can use this place?"<p>

"Of course!" Maito Gai flashed his signature pose, complete with flashing teeth. "Why, just the other day I found-"

He never got to finish before another explosion sounded.

Hyuuga Neji blinked, activating his Byakugan before wincing, the veins by his eyes quickly subsiding as he deactivated the Doujutsu. "There is too much chakra flare. My Byakugan cannot pierce it so easily."

"Guess we'll have to do this the hard way," Tenten muttered, walking into the clearing. "Oi – Huh? Sensei!"

"Yes, my youthful student... Kakashi!" Gai cried upon seeing his 'rival' slumped on the ground. "What happened to you!"

A crash as something impacted into the ground not far from them, leaving a crater.

"Ow," Jiraiya moaned as he crawled out of said crater. "I gotta give it to you..."

An even bigger crash and small tremors shook the ground as Gamabunta joined him.

"**I believe you,**" the Toad Boss moaned. "**What a kick... and claws... and talons...**"

"Oh," Team Gai turned to see Konoha's newest 'guests of the Hokage' standing by them, as the remains of something faded into purple mist, the previously flat meadow turning back into a forest clearing. "Good morning. We're taking this field for a while, if you don't mind."

"Yosh!" Gai called. "Team, today we'll be pitting our youthful spirit against such youthful summoners!"

"Yes, Gai Sensei!" Rock Lee answered.

"LEE!"

"GAI SENSEI!"

"LEE!"

"My eyes..." Yuugi moaned as the fiery sunset backdrop with waves came on.

"Ow..." Ryou moaned.

"Ra dammit, it's bright," Malik grumbled.

"Damn straight," Marik shaded his own eyes.

"Turn that off!" Bakura roared, throwing a kunai at Gai.

The _taijutsu_ master easily dodged it, but he noted that the kunai actually cut while an inch away from his forearm spandex. "Oh? I didn't know you had wind affinity."

"He doesn't," Yami answered as Bakura looked confused. "We just sharpened the knives using our skills." He walked over and wicked up the kunai, waving it. A blue sheen appeared trailing behind the blade. "The blade is so sharp that the air around it is cut each time it moves."

"That's imp/ /ossible," Tenten pointed out. She paused.

"You are very welcome to test your skills against us," Yami nodded. "However, I will be your referee. If we let Malik and Bakura loose, Konoha would burn in six hours."

"Less than that," Bakura scowled.

"I was accounting for shinobi interference," Yami pointed out.

"Yeah. I guessed about five hours," Bakura lazily stretched. "Our _hikari_s need practice too, after all."

"Very well then," Yuugi nodded. "No permanent injuries, okay?"

"Bakura..." Ryou moaned. "Really?"

"You can use the stupid deck Pegasus gave us," Bakura scowled as he pushed Ryou forward. "If I have to hear that tittering again I'll set them on fire, I swear..."

"Wish me luck!" Yuugi chirped as he stood before Tenten. Ryou took Lee, the least intimidating of the three Genin, and Marik scowled at Neji, who glared back. All three drew a six-card hand.

"Duel!"

* * *

><p>"A kid shouldn't be playing with the big girls, you know," Tenten commented as she faced Yuugi.<p>

"I'm in my twenties," Yuugi sighed.

The kunoichi stopped momentarily. "Really? Wow, what's your secret?"

"It's a long story," Yuugi shrugged. "Just call it genetics."

"Sucks to be you," Tenten shrugged. "Anyway, I'm a weapons mistress, so, if I win this, you get your friend to teach me how to sharpen my weapons like that." _Cool and freaky,_ her mind snickered. _Neji, let's see you counter this._

"And if I win?" Yuugi asked coyly.

"Treat you to lunch?" Tenten shrugged.

"You should ask Bakura yourself," Yuugi murmured. "Okay, Bakura would be really mad if he has to teach, so... you're a weapons master, so let's match arsenals. Red Gadget!"

A red-coloured robot with a large metal gear attached behind appeared in a burst of light. "Now it's up to you."

* * *

><p>"Fate is not with you today," Neji said as he got into a stance.<p>

One of Marik's eyebrows twitched. "Well, I was thinking of holding back, but I doubt you'd need it." Power flared about him as he drew his hand.

Neji blinked, shaking his head as he deactivated the Byakugan. _I cannot see any of the tenketsu, be it on him or his other, save that his is a case of too much chakra, but the others... Yami Malik, Bakura Yami, Yami no Yuugi... all of them, it's like they have no chakra at all... but that would mean that they're dead..._

"Watch out!" Marik snarled, holding up a card. "_Battle Mania!_"

Neji nearly forgot his Hyuuga breeding as his body moved to begin attacking of his own accord. "Two strikes!"

A red and a blue door appeared in mid-air, Neji hitting the red door with his Jyuuken. "Four strikes! Eight strikes! Sixteen strikes! Thirty-two strikes!"

_This door... it isn't normal!_

"Sixty-four strikes!" The red door was still standing.

"Now then, here you have a choice," Marik drawled. "You can choose to recover half the energy expended in that attack, or you can inflict me with half the power behind that attack*. What will it be?"

"He's planning something," Naruto nodded. "Definitely."

"Half that power –! That's thirty-two strikes!" Neji pointed out.

"So?" Marik blinked. "It's not mine. Not like it's going to hurt me anyway. Well?"

Neji nodded, contemplating as a tic formed on his forehead. "Feel the Jyuuken and fear it, even at half strength. I choose to inflict."

The red door began to glow a dull red.

"Excellent," Marik cackled, as a red bolt of light exploded from the red door. "_Barrel Behind the Door!_"

A gold-and-faïence matchlock pistol materialized, lazuli-hooded serpent on the grip snarling as it sucked in the red light–

And fired them back.

Naruto and Sai and even Sasuke winced in sympathy, especially Naruto.

"Ow," Konoha's most unpredictable ninja commented. "That had _got_ to hurt."

"And the most ironic thing is," Yami commented. "The card's name is _Changing Destiny._ The doors represent a fork in the road of destiny, where you choose the next step of the path through the garden. However, at the end of a lifetime of walking you might look back, and see only one path stretching out behind you, or look ahead, and see only darkness. Marik won because your friend believed too much in destiny."

* * *

><p><em><strong>*Animé effect<strong>_

* * *

><p>"Might as well," Ryou sighed, forlornly looking as Yuugi summoned Stronghold, the Moving Fortress, and Marik easily beat his opponent with a two-trap combination.<p>

"One starts with a trap, the other summons a monster," Rock Lee muttered. "What will you play?"

"Draw," Ryou muttered, drawing an extra card. "Field Magic, Future Visions!"

The air itself turned rosy in colour, the sky itself darkening in response.

"Within Future Visions, our actions are immediately moved to the future," Ryou muttered. "Within this field of future vision, I summon Fortune Lady Lighty."

A perky blonde girl, hair cut in a bob, in a yellow coat with a skimpy black leotard and black tights appeared, holding a staff with a blade attached about the end, spinning about one leg.

"However, she doesn't stay around for long," Ryou added, as the blonde bowed and disappeared, fading from sight. "but she allows me to summon Fortune Lady Firey."

Another girl, this one red-haired, wearing a red coat over blue-turquiose tights and holding the same type of staff appeared, glaring at Rock Lee.

Lee blinked. "Am I supposed to attack?"

"Fortune Lady Firey will activate her effect," Ryou continued. "Destroy one monster..." Ryou finger pointed to Rock Lee.

The taijutsu specialising shinobi gulped.

"Flames of Fate," Ryou finalised, as the Fortune Lady conjured a spiral of flame.

Neji groaned as he slowly got up, having collapsed when the red light had hit him. _Yeah, half the power all right... shouldn't have put that much strength into it..._

Lee landed next to him, singed and burned and parts of his spandex melting. He was soon followed by Tenten, who landed on Lee's back on her ass.

"Five minutes," Yami examined his watch. "We need to work on our timing. Kakashi San, it's your team's turn."

All three gulped.

"Gotta write that will soon," Naruto muttered as he took a stance.

The gear monster, Fortune Lady Firey and what could only be a glob of floating goo looked at them in a manner that could only be described as predatory...

* * *

><p>The boy wanted to laugh, even as he threw the kunai only for the supposed enemy to miss. His face had wanted revenge and abandon this? People could be so foolish sometimes in the heat of the moment, and now he found his face, the original, even more so.<p>

"Oi, Sasuke!" Uzumaki San – _Naruto,_ he mentally chided himself. "You missed!"

Internally laughing, he activated the hidden trap in the wires attached, which bound the blonde to a tree.

"Nah," he replied, hoping that Naruto would miss the slip-up. "And? Who's better?"

"Fuck you!"

The boy wanted to laugh again as both of them dodged the fireball thrown at them by the fire-conjurer. This was better than the doom and gloom that haunted the child wherever in his mind. This was fast becoming a thrill to be savoured, a joy to have, a precious treasure that he would kill to protect.

His mind's eye moved to the sight of dark, gloomy, poorly-lit hallways of white walls and wood planking, marred by so much blood, and hidden somewhere in the maze was the foolish original.

_And I soon will, omote..._

He grinned to himself, seemingly unnoticed by the other two, his own soon-to-be team-mates... What a nice word, team-mates.


	15. Chapter 15

"It appears that we must move quickly; the Akatsuki group has been accelerating their movements in the wake of the … _event_ at Taki and here." Yami stated a week later to the assembled group in the Hokage's office.

Uchiha Itachi had, very recently, been cleared of all charges concerning the Uchiha Massacre as the Goudaime, with the help of a Sai secretly freed from Danzo and his curse seal, unlocked the journals of the Sandaime which detailed everything, with evidence enough to clear his status. Of course, this clearance wasn't publicly announced, although it did mean that Itachi was still under ANBU surveillance. By virtue of the ANBU, the Konoha Council couldn't interfere, and Tsunade further took the opportunity to strip more power from them and, in proxy, the ignorant fools who nearly insulted Ryou and, in proxy, would have earned Bakura's wrath.

She also had the feeling that they should have killed Kisame soon and that keeping him in ANBU incarceration was an exercise in futility, but then she had the same feeling about Itachi's situation as well, so it was pretty even.

Except for when Sasuke kept shooting looks at Itachi, who impassively sat by the group.

"Taki has sent us a letter of censure," Tsunade resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "Concerning the Nanabi. There should not be any major diplomatic incident from this, but we may expect tensions between Konoha and the two northern villages, Iwa and Kumo to rise."

"I see," Yami nodded. "However, there should be no problem moving from Konoha to the Swamp Country, correct?"

"No," Tsunade shook her head. "The village is not charging for such a mission, given the apparent sensitive nature of it." Silence hung behind expectantly as she looked at Yami.

"However, you would require due compensation," Yuugi understandingly supplied. "We are currently studying the various seals used to Uzumaki Kun to seal the Kyuubi no Yonkou. Upon breaking the seal, we will return the demon and gift him what we gave to Sabaku no Gaara..."

* * *

><p>An explosion sounded over Suna as a clay bird flew overhead. "Oi, un," Deidara called. "Is Sabaku no Gaara down there, un?"<p>

Said shinobi was standing in wait upon the far wall of the village, Temari standing beside him. Both wore identical expressions on their face. Back to back, Kankuro had his puppets out against Sasori and the scorpion-tail puppet, Hiruko.

"Is there a problem?" Gaara monotonously replied.

"Yeah, we'd like you to come with us, un," Deidara yelled, preparing more explosive animals.

"My apologies, but I am dealing with the mortal enemy of every higher-rank ninja at the moment," Gaara replied. "However..."

He slammed his left hand, which bore a blue swirl tattoo, upon the ground. Shadows erupted from it, which quickly shifted to firm ground and reformed itself to one of the legendary nine that came from the primordial beast of the Sage of the Six Paths.

"**Good afternoon~" **Ichibi no Shukaku sang, its claws clicking as if readying to punch something. "**You know, I don't appreciate that opinion of yours."**

"What the–?" Deidara was snatched off the skies by the giant _tanuki_'s claws and crushed in one sand encrusted claw. At the same moment, one giant foot landed on Hiruko. It didn't matter what the puppet was made of; about five thousand kilograms of demon just crushed it.

The claw exploded, but Shukaku tightened its grip, Deidara rapidly turning blue from lack of oxygen.

"You want him, don't you?" Gaara said in the same flat monotone. "You can have him. If you beat him first."

* * *

><p>"Sweet revenge," Tsunade gasped, trying not to laugh. "Instead of dealing with the <em>Jinchuuriki<em>, they have to fight the much stronger _bijuu_ if they come after Gaara. Absolutely vicious."

"Cool," Naruto gasped, doubling over. "How do the Akatsuki bastards like _that_ now?"

"Hn," Sasuke stated, though a corner of his mouth lifted. Itachi quickly turned a look at his brother, who averted his eyes.

"Very poetic," Sai agreed, wondering how to obscure this knowledge from Danzo later.

"Indeed," Kakashi answered, slightly nervous. Dealing with experienced, powerful _Jinchuuriki _were bad enough. Dealing with canny, experienced, and powerful demons who had not survived centuries for nothing could only be worse. The Akatsuki had no idea what was waiting for them...

"Worse than the Shadow Realm?" Malik pseudo-innocently asked.

Kakashi outright shivered. "Hell no. Nothing is worse than that."

Itachi blinked. "We will need an explanation later. I propose we move to the next order of business after the four of you leave the room."

"Shimura Danzo," Yami stated immediately. "Oh come on, Malik can read minds. It's not that hard, you know."

This news was received by silence.

"Yes, it is immediate," Yami impatiently replied. "Oh, and, Hokage Sama. This news might be better received outside Sai's field of hearing as well as Naruto's. This concerns their clan alone."

"You heard him," Kakashi gravely nodded to Sai, who dejected strolled out, Naruto immediately following out of some twisted sense of friendship. Good for Sai anyway.

"You might want to be aware that Elder Shimura has something called the Sharingan implanted in his eye and right arm." Bakura took it up from there once the door closed and Tsunade activated the privacy seals.

"Not only that, but he planned out the Uchiha Massacre," Marik added.

"And he ripped out another eye and implanted it in his head..." Malik continued.

Itachi was gripping the table so hard that the wood grain under his fingers cracked.

Sasuke immediately focused on him. "What are you not telling me?"

"'How did they know? It was supposed to be a secret...?'" Malik quoted. "Oh, now you're thinking of seven different things at the same time! How original! Shimura Danzo stole the eyes of your clan for their power, was it?"

"Stop it," Itachi growled.

"The family might not hold my loyalty, but..." Sasuke shook his head. "I cannot believe that anyone would do this."

"ROOT is still in effect, and Sai was one of its members," Ryou shyly added.

"Until we got the seal off," Yuugi cheerfully continued.

"And threatened him," Yami added. "What?" he replied indignantly to all the looks.

"ANBU," Tsunade barked. Four masked men appeared. "Put Shimura Danzo under house arrest in suspect for high treason against the Hokage. Send Ibiki on him soon after."

"Yes!" the ANBU disappeared to follow their orders.

"Next order of business?" Yami asked.

"We're done," Tsunade shook her head. She sighed once they had left her office and considered.

People with unusual summons were nothing new. People with powers over the shadows were nothing new, as were people who could control the _bijuu_ were nothing new . People who could read minds were nothing new as well. But those who could do it the moment they were in the presence of the target was the best spy and interrogator in the world. No secret, no misleading word, no half-truth could evade someone who could read your mind immediately and completely like the blonde had.

Konoha had just discovered something nations would kill to control.

* * *

><p>It was a long while, in fact, all the way until sunset, when the Yuugioh pair finally stopped at a swing set, Yami leaning on the steel frame as he turned around.<p>

"Can I help you?" he asked their stalker for the last few hours.

"Perhaps," the man replied. "You have seen him today. Sasuke is not himself; I suspect that this other self has already surfaced. You can help me."

"Play a game with me," Yami replied slyly.

"Yami..." Yuugi started.

"Hush, my light. The Dark Game is used for judgement, after all." Yami softly replied, turning back to see Yuugi perched on a swing. "We must test his mettle if he truly wants our help."

"Very well," the man nodded. "We must hurry, though. The ANBU watch us."

"It is a riddle game," Yami started. "The rules are, each time you ask a question, I will answer with a riddle, which you must solve before I confirm your answer. Game start!"

"What is this _darkness_?" he started.

"In your future and in your past, I come and go so senseless and fast, my purpose is unknown to all, remembrance seems to drift then fall, I travel by night and fade by day, because that is my common way." Yami smiled.

It was a long silence before the man answered: "Dreams."

"You have answered your question," Yami replied. "The darkness is a dream of what we wish to be, a form of the id given shape in the mind of the original."

"Is Sasuke in danger?"

"The more you have of it, the less you see."

"Darkness?"

"Tell me, is the darkness of the mind a danger?" Yami rhetorically asked.

"Ah. Then he is still my brother?"

"It stands alone, with no bone or solid form, adamant, it prospers never wrong, though hurt it may. Twistable, malleable, might it be, but always straight as an arrow it flies."

"The truth?"

"Do you wish for the truth?"

"Of course."

"Never mistake a darkness for the original," Yami shook his head. "A darkness is the demons of oneself. Some are noble, some are cruel, some are vindictive. Nothing changes the fact that a darkness and light cannot naturally live in one mind." His face twisted. "When a darkness takes over, they essentially steal the years of life given to the original. It is, in other words, like possession by a demon."

"What?"

Yami smiled. "There's someone that I'm always near, Yet in the dark I disappear. To this one only I am loyal, though in his wake I'm doomed to toil. He feels me not, we always touch, if I were lost, he'd not lose much. And now I come to my surprise, For you are he – but who am I?"

"... Shadow."

"Correct. The darkness of our minds is only a shadow of our selves. And it is this shadow that seeks to rule our minds and drown us in the dark memories of our selves as they take over our lives and essentially kill what we once were. And soon, they degenerate without the original." Yami sighed, crimson eyes glimmering in what little light there was. "They drown in madness and die soon after. Whether or not you believe me is up to you, but right now, Uchiha Sasuke is in danger from within." Crimson eyes turned flat. "Before you is a threat to your brother that you can do nothing against, for it is himself that he is fighting now. When you planned, you forgot to take into account the adverse effects of what you did, and the proof is in play right now. It is up to you now, Uchiha Itachi, to decide what you would do. Demons and rogues know nothing else, save starlight."

And they left him there until the sun fell over the horizon.

* * *

><p>A <em>clang<em> alerted Hoshigaki Kisame to the opening of his cell doors. "Time to escort me to my execution?"

"No," the too-young voice replied. Kisame opened his eyes.

"Well now," the Swordsman said. "To what did I merit Itachi's little brother visiting me?"

Cerise eyes met small piggy black ones. The smirk died as Kisame blinked. "You're not him."

"I am he. Or at least, I was." a corner of his lips lifted. "It took me a while to sneak in here. Sasuke might have the ninja skills, but definitely not the creativity to avoid ANBU. I am going to set you free, Hoshigaki San, in exchange for a favour."

The Kiri nuke-nin was intrigued. "What?"

"Get Uchiha Itachi out of here." A distinct frosty tone took over the too-high voice. "I need him alive to gain more power, enough to live without fearing for my life. As long as Uchiha Itachi lives, I gain power, and no one else will ever think that I am not Sasuke."

"But you're not." Kisame pointed out. The Akatsuki member was lifted by his collar and slammed into a wall by the twelve-year-old.

"I don't need you to point that out," the boy growled, eyes Kisame had seen before in the face of dead men walking staring out at him from the young face. "What I need you to do is the obvious thing and run, and take Itachi with you out of the village. Do you want it?"

"And what if I refuse?" Kisame countered. "I'm wearing restraints here, and you're not."

The boy extracted a set of keys from his pocket, jingling them. "Well? And I have your sword hostage by the village gates as well."

Kisame now growled. "And what makes you think that I can't kill you here?"

"Then you'll never get Samehada back. Care to risk it?"

The Kiri nuke-nin smirked. "You have wits and balls, I'll give you that. Not like what I saw last time."

"Thank you," the boy murmured. "Do you accept?"

"I'd like that if I didn't know that someone already offered me a proposition," Kisame smirked.

"I thought so," Bakura's drawl issued at the doorway, the boy turning to see Bakura smirking and leaning on the iron frame. "The keys are easily stolen, Malik is retrieving the sword you absconded with, Yami is already coming here with Itachi, and you're right here. Now, Uchiha Sasuke, or whatever you call yourself, because you're definitely not him, what do you have to say for yourself?"

"How did you know?" the boy growled. "Not, wait, the one called Yami no Yuugi."

"Nah," Bakura snorted. "_Per-Aa_ didn't need to tell us. Dark recognises dark, you know. Unique mental condition my ass; I can tell a _yami_ apart immediately. _Per-Aa_ is going to blow it..."

"No," Yami's voice carried down here. "We saw it just fine." The strongest of the darks walked down, followed by an impassive Itachi.

"Yami San?" the boy blinked, letting go of Kisame. "Are you here to question him?"

"No," Yami shook his head. "But we have questions for you, starting with where is Uchiha Sasuke."

* * *

><p>"What are you doing?" Kakashi snarled as Yami tightened the chains. "That's my student!"<p>

"That's not Sasuke," a small voice sounded behind him.

'Sasuke' stopped struggling. "Naruto?" Relief was evident in his voice.

"Where's the real Sasuke?" Uzumaki Naruto demanded, walking into the interrogation room Yami had managed to wheedle off Ibiki (the very threat of a _bijuu _ensured immediate compliance).

The brunette blinked. "_I_ am Uchiha Sasuke, why would there be another?"

"You're not Sasuke," Naruto nodded seriously, more convinced than ever. "Sasuke doesn't pass up the opportunity to insult me. Sasuke isn't nice enough to explain chakra theory when I ask him. Sasuke especially doesn't treat anyone, especially the one he calls _Dobe _to ramen. I can also see your eyes, and you're not Sasuke."

The brunette blinked. "Oh." What else was there to say anyway?

"Don't 'oh'!" Naruto yelled. "Where's Sasuke?"

"He's here," the boy grinned weakly, entreatingly. "He's right here. We're the same, after all. He's in my mind..."

Kakashi sighed. "We'll have to hypnotise him. Naruto, hold him still."

"No!" he began struggling against his bonds. "No, I won't go back there, I won't go back there, no!"

The room practically vibrated with killer intent, the boy intent on escape. Kakashi paused immediately.

"I kept my promise," Yami shrugged. "Yuugi never asked."

"And this is our problem," the doppelgänger nodded, still struggling against his binds.

"True," then Yami smiled. "Did you hear that?"

"Everything," Itachi's impassive voice filled the room as he came in, grabbed the other chair, and sat in front of him.

"No," the brunette shook, closing his eyes. "No..."

"Hold still, Sasuke," a soft voice murmured. _"Aniki_ is coming."


End file.
